Closer To Fine
by Willow Edmond
Summary: Ronda Rousey and May Devany have never worked well together and have been kept on separate brands forever. What happens when the WWE Universe decides they should get in a rivalry? Will they end up coming to blows? Or will they finally work it out? (This story does fit in with my May Series, but can be read as a stand alone.)
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Notes:** This story has its roots in ZVarmy's Ronda Rousey/Seth Rollin's series. May was a character from my gaming world that I lent him. Naturally, ZVarmy took the story in the direction he felt was best, but I felt May got the short end of the deal, so I attempted to write stories from her POV. However, I need to make it clear that our two worlds are quite separate and nothing that happens in this story, or any of the other stories in my "May" Series should be considered part of ZVarmy's canon, unless he wishes it to be. The same goes with my series too. Things that happened in ZVarmy's series should't be considered a part of my canon, either. Anything I have written that goes against what ZVarmy has written is mine and mine alone. He has no obligation to explain it in his series.

I have done the best I can to write this story as a stand alone, so you don't have to have read the previous stories in the May series to understand this one. However, if you get curious about the background, the stories are on my page, feel free to check them out. And, if you're curious about Ronda Rousey's character (which is a bit different than how the WWE portrays her) you should really check out ZVarmy's series. You'll enjoy it. 

* * *

**Chapter One**

{o}-{o}-{o}

.

Giving her husband Seth, one final kiss, Ronda Rousey, current RAW women's wrestling champion, headed into the locker room. Another Monday, another RAW. Since she had cut way back on her acting career and signed up to work more often, if not exclusively, for the WWE, she was starting to feel the grind of the road.

She had the script for the show tonight under her arm, one of Dan, the head of creative's flunkies had seen her and handed it to her, disappearing so quickly, you would have thought he was delivering a warrant for her arrest. She hadn't had time to look at it yet. If she had to be honest, she was hoping she might not have a match tonight. She'd be happy to come out, do a promo, and then hide backstage, waiting for Seth to finish, and the two of them could head back to the hotel. Maybe a nightcap before bed, but nothing more, just the joy of getting some serious sleep, sounded _wonderful_.

As she looked around, she saw all the women wrestlers were gathered around something or someone, on a bench, three deep, so Ronda couldn't see what it was that had them so engrossed that only a few looked up and waved to her when she came in. But, Ronda didn't have to see who it was, and it was a _who_, not a_ what_. She was familiar with this scene, having seen it a thousand times before. Although, if she was honest, not as much on Mondays since Raw and Smackdown had split brands.

It was May Devany Parker, professionally known as May Devany, One of the tiny wrestlers, at barely five feet tall. She had been the first one though and there were times when Ronda wondered if May's popularity had started a trend. "Hi, God? This is Vince McMahon. I need a dozen fun-sized wrestlers. Dark hair. Big boobs if you got 'em, everyone loves to see big, bouncing, tits and I have a feeling tiny, dark haired, women wrestlers with over sized bust-lines will be the next big thing!"

Unaware she was even doing it, Ronda snapped the the band she wore around her wrist, where it briefly stung the sensitive flesh on the inside of her wrist. And, just as automatically, her mind told her to be nice. She didn't have to love May, she didn't even have to _like_ May, all she had to do was tolerate her existence. It wasn't even like they were in the same brand, May was Smackdown and had been holding the championship up until the last PPV, when she dropped it to Nikki Cross, who'd grabbed it from the ref and run away, cackling like a loon, while May had been on the floor of the ring, staring after her, looking ready to cry. But May was a hell of a draw for Smackdown, there was no way they would have her switching to RAW, especially given that everyone knew Ronda and her did not get along.

"Where are mine?" Ronda heard Alicia demand from May.

"Be patient!" May said, laughing. "They're in here, Mom wouldn't have forgotten you."

Ronda had already suspected why May was raising so much attention, but Alicia's words confirmed it, another box from home. The oldest daughter of a family with thirteen kids and a mother that seemed to be determined win some sort of Marion Cunningham of the New Millennium contest, May was _always_ getting care packages from home. And they always contained a bunch of small, wax paper bags, each containing three cookies in them, one bag for almost every wrestler in the back and often extras, just in case someone joined the roster and might be feeling neglected, before Michelle Devany Parker could meet them and mother them enough to know what type of cookies would bring them the greatest joy.

It wasn't just cookies that came in the boxes though, it usually contained a regular treasure trove of homey items. Drawings done by two younger sister, a hand painted T-shirt her brother had done for her, CD's of her brother's band with artwork another brother had drawn on the cover, the list went on and on. It seemed that almost every Parker child had some great gift that could be used to make something that could be put in a box and mailed to May. As if it was necessary to send May a bit of home, at least once a week, lest she forget the folks who loved her. Quite frankly, it was enough to make Ronda want to puke.

She snapped the band against her wrist again, felt the little sting.

May was passing out packages of cookies, and as the other women wrestlers accepted them, they started to drift away from her. Several noticed Ronda then, and waved or said hello to her and Ronda returned the greetings. She went to another bench, selected a locker, and started to stash her geer. She tossed the script onto the bench, without looking at it.

May noticed it though. "You got one too," she said.

Trying not to roll her eyes, Ronda snapped the wrist band again, and found herself going. "A script? Yes, I usually get one." She did _not_ add, 'Seeing that RAW is the show _I_ work on, it shouldn't be that shocking, should it?' Her finger pulled at the band again, but didn't snap it.

"Not just the script," May said, "The post-it-note on the top of it."

Ronda looked down. Sure enough, on the cover of the script was a screaming neon green post it with a few words on it. "Ronda, please meet me in our office at three," It was signed, "HHH" in a bold, masculine script as if he was too busy to write out his full name, or even just Hunter, he could only spare the second it took to scribble three letters. Ronda wasn't shocked, her scripts often contained instructions to report to the office before shows, she _was_ the RAW Women's Champion, and thanks to women like her, women's wrestling was as big as the men's division, and even bigger to some fans.

"Did you get one, too?" Ronda asked, more to be polite then to really be concerned.

"Yeah," May said. "three o'clock."

"Same as me," Ronda said, then frowned. _Wait a moment, it's RAW tonight. Why would May be getting a script and a note for RAW?_ "Are they doing some Make A Wish plea tonight?" she blurted out, before she could stop herself.

May's eyes narrowed only briefly, then she shrugged, her normal, good humor resolved. "Maybe, I don't know. One of the creative guys gave it to me when I came in, and then scampered off like I'd throw a ball for him. I haven't had a chance to look it over, yet."

While Ronda had never thought about it before, she got May's ball throwing reference instantly. The interns, no matter who they worked for, promotions, creative or any other division of WWE, often acted way too enthusiastic about everything, except the talent. The WWE frowned on interns who were starstruck, and more than one had found themselves taking a bus back to wherever they called home, because they had lingered too long, perhaps even fawned a bit over various superstars. This gave most of them them a tendency to deal with the entertainers as fast as possible, then run off. _Like we throw balls and they run off to chase them, _Ronda thought. _Accurate enough, and now I'll picture every intern as a puppy._ The intern who had given her script to her had shaggy reddish blond hair and she saw him as a Golden Retriever. Her fingers went to the wrist band and twisted it, again without her being aware of it, but this time she did not snap it. Instead, she looked at the clock on the wall, a relic of bygone days when cellphones had yet to be in the hands of everyone. "Well, I guess we'll find out soon enough," she said. "It's almost three."

"Yikes," May said, grabbing several items from the box, and then hastily folding the lid down. "We'd better go, then," she said, shoving the box into her locker and standing up, the items in her hands. "Just in case we can't find their makeshift office quickly."

Ronda couldn't argue with that. With a nod of agreement, she left the locker room with May. The one thing Ronda could admit to herself was that walking May along side of her, made her feel a lot taller than 5' 7". And, she liked that. _I could use you as a barstool,_ she thought.

She found herself snapping the band at her wrist again.

.

{o}-{o}-{o}

.

Out in the halls, May found herself sneaking hesitant looks at Ronda as they looked for the makeshift office, where Hunter and Stephanie would be. Part of it was nerves, because she was with Ronda, and the two were not exactly friends. They weren't total enemies, although they had been at one point, because to be honest, Ronda used to be a right bitch, hell, she could _still_ be a right bitch, but at least her bitchiness wasn't directed to her, as it had been once.

_Be fair!_ the invisible version of May's mother that lived in her head spoke so clearly May could almost picture her walking along side of her. _She _was_ dating Seth before you came along. And you _did_ make that big mistake of sleeping with him before he and Ronda had officially broken up. Which shames me a bit more than I admit, because I thought I raised you better than that._

Head version Mom was right, if not exactly _fair_. Yes, she had slept with Seth, yes, he had officially _not_ broken up with Ronda when she did that first time, but Seth had _told_ her they had. Certainly that had to count for something. She wouldn't have slept with him if he hadn't lied to her, and told her the break up hadn't officially happened yet.

_You were a little drunk that night,_ Head Mom reminded her. Head Mom? Subconscious Mom? Nah, nothing subconscious about it, May was perfectly aware that she had a version of her mother in her head, always ready to dispense advice and to try to make her a better human being, much like the real life version did. And Head Mom was right about that, she had been a little drunk that night. Well, maybe not a little, maybe a bit more than a little, maybe, if she wanted to be _totally_ honest, she was about two steps before three sheets to the wind. Normally, she could handle her liquor better than most guys, thanks to her Grandfather, who thought that rules were stupid, and was letting her drink controlled amounts by sixteen, and let her have whatever she wanted when she was eighteen. The only rule he'd had was, "You do it at my house. And you give me your cell phone so you don't drunk dial or text your mom. Because she'll kill me if she finds out I've been letting you drink."

But, on that night she had been so homesick, lonely, fairly new to WWE, and she missed the feeling of family she'd had at NXT. She was the new girl and the locker room was feeling her out. One glass of wine, lead to three, lead to shots of Everclear with beer chasers.

And, because like will always seek out like, Seth Rollins had come to the bar, looking unhappy, asking if he could join her. Sensing another unhappy soul, she had nodded.

Because she was a nice person, and because she thought Seth was kind-of cute, she had asked him what was wrong and he'd told her how he and Ronda had broken up, how much he'd loved Ronda, but he just couldn't deal with her out of control ego. May had been fairly ignorant about couple type relationships then, having never had the time growing up, but she'd dealt with enough friends and siblings broken hearts that she knew Seth was hurting way more than he let on, and he sure was acting mopey. If Seth had been one of her brothers, or one of her friends from NXT, May might have called him on his bullshit, and told him that despite her cactus-like personality, it was obvious that Seth was still head over heels for Ronda, and if he was smart, he'd stop moping, call her up, tell her, and then sit down and try to work it out with her.

But, again, she'd been drunk and lonely and Seth was at least _talking_ to her, the last thing she wanted to do was alienate the one person who was willing to keep her company that night. So, she listened, nodded, stopped doing shots and started sticking just to beers. Instead, _he_ had started with the Everclear, because she'd bought a whole bottle from the bar, and she still had some left. She let him talk about Ronda, all the things he disliked about her, how ego driven she was, so on and so forth, most of it she couldn't even remember.

An hour or so into it Seth finally seemed to realize he had been monopolizing the conversation with his woes, and asked her why she was unhappy.

She didn't want to tell him, "I miss my family! I miss my NXT sisters, one of which is my _real_ sister, Raven! I want to be a wrestler more than anything in the world, but I didn't realize there would be nights when I would be so damned lonely and all I'd want to do is go home and get a hug!" But, she wasn't great at coming up with misdirections, and part of her was remembering listening to the Divas (they were Divas back then, not Women Wrestlers) and their chat about relationships, both long-term and brief, had lead her to find something else to depress her, that suddenly popped its head out. Before May could think if this was a great idea, she blurted out. "I'm tired of being a fucking virgin."

Seth's eyes went wide and as May realized what she had said, she wished she had the superpower to go back in time. Not years, or days, just thirty seconds or so, so she could snatch those words back. She froze, convinced she had blown her whole life sky high. Surely Seth would run and tell every guy in the locker room. _Guess what, Dudes? May Devany is a virgin!_

Then, Seth had laughed. "That's a good one!"

May forced herself to laugh, relieved he thought she was joking. But, he played along, pouring her another shot, even though she wasn't doing shots anymore, and said, "I understand that's a problem, and I can help you with that."

That's all it took, and May would always blame herself. She had been so _stupid_ to make that virginity remark. And, while Seth was taking it as a joke, she also realized she'd set herself up, practically crawled into his lap and said, "Please, _do_ me."

She tried to act cool about it, but Seth had figured it out and confronted her the next day. That went on her list of most awkward conversations ever. She might have had no experience, but she'd sure as hell tried to fool him, trying to remember every awful gothic bodice ripper sex scene she'd ever read. And it wasn't like she stained the hotel sheets like some medieval child bride. But, the next day as she woke up, he looked at her and said, "You weren't kidding last night, were you?"

She thought about lying. Growing up with so many brothers and sisters, nasty barbs came fast to her tongue. Things like, "No, you just really suck at this" came to mind, but she decided that she might as well come clean, shrugged and admitted she had been a virgin.

She had to give Seth credit for how he handled it, and thought that it was his reaction that probably lead to her sticking with him for two years. He didn't freak out, he didn't show remorse, nor did he get some proud look on his face as if he'd managed to win a prize. Instead he nodded. "I wish you'd _told_ me you weren't joking."

"I wish you hadn't figure out I _was_," she'd responded, looking away from him. "Not one of my finest moments. I lost my virginity _and _found out I'm bad at sex. Oh, what a night!"

"You're not _bad,_" Seth said, his voice gentle. "Just inexperienced. We all have to start somewhere."

His gentleness at that moment felt even worse than if he had bragged or been remorseful and May reacted in self defense by cracking jokes about herself. How that until she was fifteen and got a job with Empire State, Wrestling for lessons, she had spent all her free time with gymnastics and how the hell was she supposed to find someone in the school of tuna that was her _girls_ gymnastics team? How most of the girls had been so into making it to the olympics, that instead of dating, they developed very close, personal relationships with their electric toothbrushes. ("I took mine to the Four Seasons for Valentine's Day.") And then, when she _did_ get to Empire State Wrestling, a _total_ sausage fest, her grandfather and the owner of the place made sure every guy there knew if they so much as gave her a lustful look, her grandfather would rip their limbs off their body. ("And I guess I wasn't worth that risk, I wonder why?")

She made crack after crack about herself, until Seth had leaned over and kissed her long and hard. "May?" he began after they had finished, and she found herself a little breathless. "Be quiet."

"I feel so _stupid,_" she said, fighting off the urge to kiss him this time. That kiss had been hotter than the actual sex the night before. Maybe it was that she wasn't drunk anymore? Maybe it was that he knew? "I thought I could bluff, but I can't. I have no clue what I'm doing and it must be _so_ obvious that you figured it out."

"May, it's okay," Seth said, pulling her close. "It's not rocket science. Anything you don't know, you can learn."

She couldn't argue with that logic, but she found herself blushing as she asked him, "Can you _show _me?" Then, being her and being so scared and nervous, she had to keep going, "I mean, I know that sounds like some weird porn plot, 'sir, I'm just a virgin, will you show me how to please a man?' But, it's so damned _awkward_. I just want to be straight about this, even if it seems weird. I know _nothing_, you know everything, well, maybe not _everything_, but a whole lot more than me. I don't want to pretend, I don't want to fumble. I want you to tell me what to do. What you like, what you don't like. I mean, if you still want to, like, keep doing it. Maybe I'm so bad at it, you want to run?"

Again, he kissed her, leaving her breathless, then said, "Wow, when you get nervous, you become a regular motor mouth."

"I know," May wailed. "But I don't know how to stop!"

Seth smiled and there was something wicked about that smile. He kissed her again, even longer and harder. "Maybe," he suggested, "We should start with finding other things you can do with your mouth."

"Good idea," she blurted out, before she could stop herself, "I was raised not to talk with my mouth full."

He'd laughed at that, then lay back down on the bed, pulling her on top of him and looking into her eyes. "May?"

"Yeah?"

"Shut the fuck up," he said, and kissed her again.

That was the beginning of two year relationship, and at first, it was pretty good. Once she was able to stop babbling, Seth _did_ teach her everything he liked. In return, he helped her find out everything _she _liked. And, she must have learned a lot under his teaching, because when they broke up and she started dating Dolph Ziggler, he sure hadn't seemed unhappy with her skill set, even if it did seem to take forever for the two of them to connect in that way.

But, neither Dolph nor Seth could be blamed for that one either, that had fallen firmly on her shoulders, when after a night of too much drinking with Alicia (maybe she didn't hold her booze as well as she thought she did) she had told her that she'd been a virgin her first time with Seth. And then it seemed like ten seconds later, the whole locker room knew. May didn't blame Alicia, news like that was too juicy not to share. But she knew it made most of the locker room see her different. For some, it made them see her as a child, and her short stature didn't help with that. Inexperienced. She'd been given a try out and entered NXT at nineteen, thanks to her experience in Empire State Wrestling, which made her one of the younger girls in the locker room as well. The other half looked at her as some strange creature, the virginal hussy who stole Seth from Ronda with her magical hymen powers.

Roman Reigns fell in that later camp and the two of them _never_ got along. They _still_ didn't, but when May had discovered a juicy tidbit about Mr. Reigns, the two of them came to an uncomfortable truce, that made it so they could at least nod in the halls.

If May had to be honest, she got along much better with Seth than she did with Roman. She and Seth had managed to work themselves to the point where they were civil enough that they could stand near each other in catering and talk about trivial things. When she congratulated him on his marriage to Ronda, he had given her a weird look as if he thought she might be joking. When he realized she wasn't, he accepted her congratulations and told her how happy he was. She told him she hoped he and Ronda were always that happy. And she'd meant it. She still had her moments when she thought he was a slack-jaw weasel who used her as a dickstand while waiting for his twue wuve Wonda Wousey to return, but _mostly_, she was over it.

But Ronda, the Queen of WWE (Charlotte could claim that title as much as she wanted, but anyone who knew _anything_ knew that honor belonged to Ronda) was another matter. To give her credit, she had believed Seth when he told her that he'd lied to May about their relationship being over. She hadn't attacked May, the two hadn't had some official blow out in the hall where they screamed at each other, they just avoided each other and it was pretty clear for a long time, that Ronda would have broken into a cheer, had May been run off the road and killed on the way to the next house show.

_Be fair, you wouldn't have shed a tear if she was killed either! _

"Shut _up_, Mom," she muttered.

"What?"

Ronda's voice broke her into reality and she realized she had been totally wrapped up in her own thoughts. Wrapped up enough that she didn't realize that Ronda had found out where the makeshift office was and was leading them towards it briskly. May had flash of their backstage walk, Ronda scaring an intern so badly by barking at him, "Where is the office set up?" that made him look about to pee his pants. But, mostly she had been on autopilot. "Nothing," May said with a sigh.

"May, are you having a fucking seizure or something?" Ronda demanded. They had stopped in front of a closed door that had a sign that said, "Office" on it.

"Am I on the floor, foaming at the mouth?" May snapped, unable to stop herself.

"That's not the only reaction to a seizure and you know it," Ronda said, rolling her eyes. Her fingers tugged at the wristband she wore, snapping it against her wrist. She was right, there were all different types of reactions to all different types of seizures. All wrestlers, or anyone that grew up watching House knew that. "Are you all right?"

"Yeah," May suspected the words didn't come out of real concern, Ronda was more likely worried that if she didn't get her head out of the clouds, she'd embarrass herself (not bad) and Ronda (horrifying!) at this meeting. "I'm just gathering wool," she said, by way of explanation.

"Well, knit Dolph a sweater on your own time," Ronda countered. "This is WWE time."

_When did you become such a corporate suck up? _

_That_ little voice in her head, was purely her own.

.

{o}-{o}-{o}

.

As they were ushered into the office by Stephanie, Ronda stared at the back of May's head in disbelief. The woman really was acting crazy, holding on to those items from her box in her hands, talking to her mother, who wasn't there, and walking around dazed. Not that Ronda was really concerned about her, but there was a reason why they had both been called to the office together, and the last thing she needed was Little Miss Brain-On-Mars to make Stephanie and Hunter forget why they'd been summoned and instead start thinking about sending May to Wellness for a piss test. _She's better snap out of it, or I'm going to have to choke a bitch._

Again, she snapped the wristband, and again she felt the tiny sting.

"Welcome," Hunter said. Like every other makeshift office, the room was small. There were a couple of chairs and a desk, but usually, this close to how it was shown on TV, business was conducted quickly and standing up. "Have either of you looked over the script?"

May heard that, because she shook her head as fast as Ronda did and even added, "I don't even know why I got a script. I'm Smackdown."

"Maybe," Hunter said, "Then again, maybe not."

Now Ronda felt her brows furrow. It was an official unofficial rule that May Devany and Ronda Rousey did not work together. There was a time when Ronda had wanted it added into her contract, but cooler heads prevailed and her agent talked her out of that. But, even though it wasn't in her contract, the last few years it was unwritten, but also seemed unbreakable. Ronda knew that was in part, to appease her, but she also knew there was a bit of sympathy for her behind the decision. Stephanie seemed to be sympathetic to Ronda's situation, that Seth had, for all intents and purposes, cheated on her with May. Maybe he'd lied to May about where his relationship stood with Ronda, but that didn't still make it damned awkward to work together. May hadn't been treated poorly because of this, but Stephanie, Hunter, and even Old Man Vinnie had been surprisingly cooperative and had done their best to keep the two of them apart. Now the unbreakable, unwritten rule was to be broken?

She must have shot Hunter a look, because he held up his hands a bit in a soft "Stop" gesture. "Now, I know you two girls have a bit of a past."

"If you call both of us playing with the same dick 'a bit of a past,'" May said, snorting.

Ronda stared at May, almost in shock. Locker room gossip told her May wasn't as sweet and pure as you might think, especially not if you got a couple glasses of wine into her. But as far as Ronda knew, she didn't show her crude side to any of the McMahon clan.

The looks on Hunter and Stephanie's face showed Ronda she was right, and this might be the first glimpse they had seen of May's other side, the side that wasn't a fine, upstanding role model for young women, almost as bad as Bayley. Well, maybe _as_ bad as Bayley, but in a more mature way. No "Bayley Buddies" for May. May was almost the motherly role model, while Bayley was the big sister. "Well," Hunter finally said, "I might not have put it in those terms, but yes. And I understand why at first, the two of you were better off kept separate. But we've moved on from there. Ronda, you're married to Seth, and May you're," there was a brief pause, and then he continued, "in a _relationship_ with Dolph Ziggler. I think it's time to put aside such petty things and realize that it's time to do what's best for the company."

"Now," Stephanie said, her voice brisk and all business, "Have you girls been on Twitter lately?"

Ronda and May looked at each other and shrugged. "Not today," Ronda said.

"About the same," May said.

"We put up something on WWE asking what the WWE thought would be a perfect match, and much to our surprise, the number one match folks want to see is Ronda Rousey and May Devany. People have been talking and tweeting about it all day. It was the top trend for awhile, and still going!"

Again, Ronda and May exchanged looks. But this time, May spoke first. "Maybe you shouldn't have had me drop the belt. If I still had it, we'd be meeting at Survivor Series."

"That's true," Hunter said, "And we have discussed if we should have you win your belt back, maybe just before Survivor Series."

"But, we realize that this something we should do as soon as possible," Stephanie said. "Strike while the iron is hot. We need something to liven up RAW, not that you're not doing a _fantastic_ job, Ronda, but if the fans want to see Ronda Rousey and May Devany in a match? Let's give it to them."

"Why am _I_ going to go to RAW?" May asked. "I mean, yeah, because that's where Ronda is, but unless we're doing an official trade, I don't see my character _invading_ RAW. That's a pretty heel move."

"You know there aren't heels and faces in the women's division," Hunter said.

May and Ronda looked at each other, recognizing verbal cow patties when they heard them. Yes, the WWE wanted to believe women wrestlers could easily change rolls from face to heel, but faces and heels were picked by the WWE Universe. If you were cheered, you were a face, if you were booed, you were a heel. By decree of the WWE universe, both Ronda and May were faces who shared many of the same fans. Even when Ronda's character was a complete and utter bitch, she still got cheers, and even her boos came off like the audience was trying to please her. Ronda suspected that the fans wanted them to fight because it would be a "No matter who loses, the fans win!" match. Something the WWE seemed to shy from at times, or if they didn't, they built it up forever. This sounded like it was going to be put into motion quickly.

"May, you've expressed some frustration at your character always having to be so positive and cheerful," Stephanie said. "This would give you a chance to break away from that. Both of you are strong wrestlers, this will make a great main event for the next PPV. And, we're going on the angle that May, you are tired of Ronda having everything. Ronda has held both titles, you've only ever held the Smackdown title. Ronda ran off and make movies, and now she's back and you think she's getting preferential treatment."

Ronda didn't think this was exactly fair. She had been the one to choose not to devote herself to acting as much, and go back into wrestling. She'd passed over a lot of opportunities she might have jumped to have at one point, including a permanent role on _Orange Is The New Black_. She strongly disliked the speculation that she had been rejected by Hollywood and had "come crawling back" to "suck on the teat" of the WWE. Most of her true fans didn't care, but there was a small circle of fans who were discontent and very vocal about it.

But, if May was going to challenge Ronda, picking on her returning to the WWE would be something she'd be likely to point out just for the cheap pops it would get her. Not that Ronda blamed her, she would have done the same thing.

"So, tonight, May, you'll come out and give a strong promo about how unfair you think things are," Hunter explained.

"It's all in the script," Stephanie said. "But we thought we should let you know this was coming. Do either of you have any problems with this?"

Ronda wanted to object, to tell Stephanie how wrong this was, but the issue was that she didn't think it was so wrong. She wasn't fond of May, but _she_ wasn't the same person Seth had cheated on. She had grown a lot and she and Seth were married. Seth rarely even spoke of when he dated May, and when he did, it was in the vaguest of ways, almost as if it had been an old movie he was recalling bits and pieces of. Yet, he could tell her in _exact_ detail what she wore on their first date. She could do this. She wasn't sure about May though.

"I'm fine with it," May said briskly. Then, she looked at her hands, realizing she was still holding onto things from the box in them, and handed a small bag to Hunter and two small bags to Stephanie. "My mom," she explained. "That other bag is for Mr. McMahon.

_Cookies, _Ronda thought. _Her mother made fucking _cookies_ for our bosses. _

She snapped the band around her wrist again.

* * *

Just a note? No, I have not given up on my other series. I just wrote this as a side project, first so I could tie up some loose ends, and second, because ZVarmy thought it was a good idea.


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: **_This is not a disclaimer. This is a bunch of silly words that only exist to help the chapter title to center better. I wish I had something clever to say every time I did one of these. Some wise advice. But alas, I do not. I just have silly words. _

* * *

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**Chapter Two**

{o}-{o}-{o}

RAW

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"Ladies and Gentlemen, please welcome your WWE RAW women's champion, _Ronda Rousey!" _

As_ Bad Reputation _started blaring through the loudspeakers Ronda walked out from backstage, pausing to raise the Championship above her head, before heading town the ramp. She was smiling warmly and the audience responded with cheers and whoops. There was a meme flying around the internet community, showing six pictures of Ronda each with a vastly different expression on her face and the words, "The Many Faces of Ronda." at the bottom. Each head shot was labeled to reflect the emotion it showed, so there was Happy Ronda, Sad Ronda, Angry Ronda, Sweet Ronda, irritated Ronda and her favorite, "uh oh, Ronda's gonna kill you!" Seth had worried the meme would offend her, but instead she was flattered. With all this bollocks about female _sports entertainers_ being able to have a fluid character that could be both heel or face, Ronda was actually managing to pull it off, just by changing the expressions on her face.

She kept that warm smile on as she got into the ring. Accepting a microphone from JoJo, she went to the center of the ring, "Welcome, everyone, to Monday Night _RAW!_"

The cheers were loud and strong, but if you looked into the audience, you could see more than a few people booing or having their arms crossed over their chests, looking angry. There were times when Ronda suspected they were the same folks who insisted on cheering for her when she was acting like a heel. Smark fans, who thought that playing the opposite gave them instant cred into some magical circle of fandom. If that was true, Ronda could not find it in her heart to give a single damn.

Until her meeting with Hunter and Stephanie that afternoon, Ronda had been in a rivalry with Lacey Evans. Lacey had taken the championship from her once, holding it for three months until the last PPV when Ronda got it back after having to "work her way up from the bottom," one of the many "the powers that be are holding me back!" story lines she'd played over the years. This one could have gone on for a little longer, Lacey was good enough at both wrestling and promo work that the majority of the fans were loving it. This was another reason why Ronda was surprised at the switch to May as her rival, until Hunter and Stephanie told her and May that Lacey needed to go in for shoulder surgery.

Ronda looked down at the floor for a moment, as if she needed to gather her thoughts, then raised her head, and now she was serious, Ronda, with a tiny bit of sad Ronda thrown in. "I know you folks were all hoping to see Lacey and I fight again, but, I'm afraid I have some bad news. Lacey has to go in for shoulder surgery."

The reaction was mixed, as to be expected. Were you suppose to cheer for an injury? Booing didn't seem right either, because it could come across like you were disappointed at a favorite wrestler getting injured, as if it were their fault? _Someone needs to teach them to all say, "Awwww" in unison,_ Ronda thought as she continued to speak. "I know, I know, this is a tragedy." She lowered her head again, as if she was unable to speak her sorrow for Lacey was so deep, that she needed a moment to collect herself. Then she looked up and her lips were spread into a smirk. "Tragic that I didn't take her _head_ off her shoulders!" Lacey's injury didn't have much to do with Ronda, it was one of those things done over time, but that wouldn't stop Ronda from taking credit for it.

The reaction from the audience was loud, if mixed in cheering and boos. It didn't matter, all that mattered was noise and this certainly _was_ noise. "Oh, please," she continued, "I know, she's a former marine, well trained, blah blah blah. But it doesn't matter! I am the _strongest_ and _fastest_ wrestler in this business. I am not just good, I am not just great, I am…" Slight pause, three beats, then, "The Best_. _ And not the best woman's wrestler, I am, in all honesty the best wrestler that has ever lived."

Now, most of the noise was grumbling. Fans liked to believe their favorites were unstoppable, but they weren't always sure they should _brag_ about it. Ronda rode the grumbles by smirking. "People, I'm sorry that the truth bothers you, but this is something you should have figured out by now. There is _nobody,"_ as she spoke, she made a sweeping motion towards the ramp, "in that locker room that can beat me. And _I_ should know, they've _all_ tried."

Now the booing got really loud as people recalled the fights Ronda had lost. But, that was wrestling for you, you were allowed to forget your defeats, and, there _wasn't_ a women on RAW and most of Smackdown she hadn't beaten. Maybe not in e_very_ fight, but the majority of them.

As expected by everyone but the crowd, because this had happened so fast that no one had time to update the card, the driving beat of, Alice Cooper's _Cold Machines _came blaring out of the loudspeakers. Like good little sheep, the audience all gasped in unison and looked towards the ramp. _May?_ Here at _RAW?_ Wasn't that _impossible?_ _Yeah, _Ronda thought,_ she managed to break through the magical force field that keeps the Smackdown wrestlers from the RAW wrestlers. _Fortunately, the eye roll that matched her inner dialog would work for this situation too. The fans would think it was directed at May.

May appeared at the top of the ramp, holding a microphone. She let the audience cheer for her, or boo, although most of them cheered, probably just for the novelty of having someone from Smackdown guest star on RAW. Ronda glared at her. When the music faded out, May brought the microphone to her lips.

"Hold on a moment," May said, an insincere smile on her face. "I heard you from backstage, talking about how _nobody_ in the locker room could beat you." She tipped her head to one side, and appeared to be studying Ronda. "And, I thought to myself, 'When did Ronda Rousey beat me?' But soon I realized," she paused briefly and her expression changed from smirking sarcasm to one of pure fury, "...you hadn't. _Ever." _That was another lie, Ronda had beat hear once, but it was a long time ago and again, that whole selective memory thing wrestlers had.

Ronda raised her microphone to speak, but May interrupted her. "And, I think we need to change that."

Ronda fixed her with a baleful look. "Why don't you go back to Smackdown, the C- show, and leave RAW for the real talent. Because from where I stand, you won't last five minutes with me, little fun-sized freak!"

The audience gasped, figuring May might run down to the ring and attack Ronda, but instead she went back to that insincere smile. "Ah yes, go right to the cheap insults." she looked at the audience, "Do you believe it? She figured out that I'm short! Next thing you know it, she'll realize I'm wearing _shoes."_

She left a brief pause for a laugh to go through the audience, then spoke again, this time turning her attention back to Ronda. "As I was backstage, I also realized I have never held the RAW Women's Championship. I've held the Smackdown Women's Championship so much that they might as well just keep my name on it."

At best, this was exaggerated, at worst it was lying. May had held the belt three times. Yes, one time she held it for almost a year, but compared to Ronda, her reign on Smackdown was barely a blip on the radar. And over at Smackdown itself, Charlotte had blown that record apart before May ever won it the first time.

"So, I think it's time to advance myself again and take_ that _away from you." Since "belt" was one of Vince McMahon's words verboten, she just pointed at it.

Ronda tossed back her head and laughed as if May's threats were a bit of comic gold. "Really? You want a try for _my_ Championship? Be serious, May," she paused and drew herself up to her full height, trying to look six feet tall instead of 5' 7", "There is no way you can take me out."

"Oh?" May's brows rose. "Fine, then let's have a match and prove it. Put up your championship up right now." She started to head down the ramp.

Ronda shook her head. "Stop right there, _tiny_ wrestler!"

May's expression went from determined, to shocked, then angry in the span of second and her nostrils flared. _Shots fired,_ Ronda thought. _I'll bet she didn't know I knew that "special" nickname Dolph calls her. I'll bet she thinks Seth doesn't even remember the night Dolph made up that song to fit with the Elton John song, Tiny Dancer. You thought Seth was oblivious, but he wasn't, May, he just thought it was too stupid to remark upon and he didn't care enough about you to be jealous._ "As much as I'd love to take out the trash, it doesn't _work_ like that. You can't just come over here from Smackdown and _demand_ a title match. This isn't your show. If you want to challenge me, you'll have to do it like anyone else on Smackdown would. You'll have to either hope you get drafted over here, or win the Royal Rumble and take me on at Wrestlemania. No special treatment for Half pints- no, wait, you're not even a _half_ pint, how about _teaspoon_. No special treatment for _teaspoons." _She paused as most of the audience gave a chuckle. "Unlike Smackdown, which hands you everything, probably because they're afraid you'll bite their ankles if they don't, here at RAW, you have to _earn_ every opportunity you get."

"_Earn?_" May said, incredulously, "Wait a moment, did you _really_ just use that word, _earn?_ Ms. Give-me-everything-or-I-walk, used the word _earn?_ Ronda, you haven't earned_ anything_ in this place. _Never."_

Those watching the titantrons saw the camera angle go from May to Ronda. Ronda had dropped the microphone by then, but was trash talking. Those close enough could hear her saying that nothing was given to her.

"From the day you set _foot_ in the WWE, you had to have _everything," _May said. "I have no clue why, but for some reason, you became Hunter's _favorite_. You were pushed to the sky, and then you used that momentum to try your hand at _acting_." She paused and shook her head looking almost amused. "And I give you credit, you snowed enough people that in the beginning, your movies were popular. But, then people wised up, and you made your _first_, but far from your _last_, bomb." She paused to let the audience react, which they did. The reactions were mixed, but they were loud and seemed to be more on the booing side, but whether it was because they thought May was wrong, or they were booing that Ronda had done movies, was impossible to tell and didn't matter anyway. "And, because your ego is so frail, you couldn't handle it, and had to come running back to WWE. And again, Hunter welcomed you, and said, 'Oh, Ronda! What do you want? Let me know, and I'll fetch it!'"

Another pause from May, to let the words sink in, another mixed reaction coming from the crowd. It either helped or didn't, depending on how you looked at it, that May could do a great imitation of Mr. Hunter Hearst Helmsley. Not as much the exact voice, but the way he pronounced words, the expressions he made while speaking. If she hadn't mentioned it was Triple H, everyone would have still known exactly who she was pretending to be. _I wonder how Hunter feels about this? _Ronda thought. She thought he'd be likely to wonder why May hadn't shown this talent off before, but there was a slim chance he might think she'd crossed the line. Was it wrong of her to hope it was the second?

If May had such qualms, she was ignoring them in favor of the pipe bomb she was laying down, seeming to be on a roll. "So, the McMahons, and yeah, I really don't get why Hunter didn't just change his last name to McMahon when he married Stephanie, but, that's another story," quick pause to let the gasps and 'ooooh' noise of the crowd happen, as if the fans could not _believe_ May had gone there. "The McMahons gave you everything a _second_ time, didn't push you, they _carried_ you to the top on a silk cushion this _second_ time, then off you ran _again_ for your acting career!" She put air quotes around the word, 'acting'. "And, _again_, at first everything was great, people went to your movies, especially if your _costar_ was talented, so they could carry _you_. But, as happened the last time, people figure out You. Can't. Act. You made another bomb, wait, no, you made _two_ bombs, that's right!"

It would have been hard to find the grains of truth in May's statements, even though they were their. Ronda had made movies again, and one of them had done _extremely_ poor at the box office, despite getting good reviews from the critics. Another hadn't made much for the studio in its theater release, but 'not much' was a far cry from "bombing" and the DVD and streaming sales did a lot better than was expected. _I should know,_ Ronda thought, glaring at May, _I still get royalty checks, and they aren't tiny, unlike you._ Maybe she wasn't as immune to May as she had thought she was. This was all supposed to be part of the show, and had it been any wrestler _but_ May, she would have let it all roll off of her. But May was actually managing to push buttons, which said she was either delivering a great promo, Ronda still had _issues_ with her, or a combination of both. _I'll take a combination of both, for five hundred, Alex. _

Unaware that Ronda might be taking this personally, and probably not caring if she was, May continued. "Ashamed and embarrassed about your failure, you ran to the WWE for a _third_ time, knowing you would always be treated like the beloved princess you and the McMahons think you are." This again, was very little truth. During her second round at acting, Ronda also worked at least part time for the WWE, and had actually been on most of the RAW shows, staking her place before the brand split. But, in a good promo, one of the major victims was always the truth. "You came back, married your one twu wuve, Seth Rollins, and as usual, you were given everything _again_. Anything and _everything_ the great Ronda Rousey wanted, was given to her without question." She paused and the angry look on her face changed into a smug smile. "Even… my _leftovers_." With that, she dropped the microphone and turned to head up the ramp.

Ronda was getting a noise in her earpiece to tell her that it was time for her to make her move, but it was unnecessary. May had crossed a line that should have never been crossed and Ronda tore up the ramp. She was almost to the back, and Ronda grabbed her by the shirt and literally threw her into the walls that surrounded the backstage, making her crash into the lights. May obviously did not expect to be attacked with that type of force, and looked dazed for a moment. Ronda grabbed her, raised her up off of her feet and slammed her to the ground.

The audience gasped, clearly shocked that May had _gone_ there. She had brought up the topic that was unwritten and forbidden, you weren't supposed to say May and Seth had dated, _especially_ if you were May or Seth.

_And they did a whole lot more than just date, _Ronda thought bitterly. She had heard the backstage stories, and even asked Seth about them. Had May been a virgin? Seth admitted she had been, but also explained she hadn't told him she was before they went to bed, well, not _exactly._ Tit for tat, said the cat, Seth had lied about having broken it off with Ronda, May had lied about not being a virgin. And while Ronda knew Seth really didn't care that May had been a virgin, there was still a part of her that was angry about it. Bestowing your virginity to someone was best left for fumbling, awkward high school kids on prom night, not a twenty something adult. And too many men _did_ consider something like that a gift. She knew around her, Seth really didn't care, and had even joked about May being stupid, saying she should have waited for her beloved "Dolphy" instead. But, she wondered sometimes if he didn't brag about it, or at least feel a little… proud of it. Not that it was May, but that it was a pretty enough girl willing to throw away a long kept virginity for him. It had to be heady stuff.

In the meantime, the audience gasped, acted shocked and then mostly cheered for Ronda. Sure, _usually_ May was so nice you felt bad when she was attacked, but she hadn't been nice tonight! She'd been so _mean_ to Ronda, and sure, Ronda wasn't always very nice, but that was _Ronda's_ nature, not May's. May pressed Ronda's buttons and May needed to pay for it.

The commentators were making constant squawks about what was going on, and Ronda knew she should keep her ear on them, because sometimes things they said were clues on how things were supposed to be going down so you kept on your timing.

But right now, Ronda didn't give a rat's ass. She was finally getting to do something she'd never done before, kick around May Devany, and it was so pleasurable, she rather regretted they hadn't had a rivalry sooner.

Ronda knew she was hurting May, that's what wrestling was about. But they both knew how to protect themselves and even though Ronda was having furious fun, tossing May about like an ill working toy given to an angry toddler, she knew better than to do things that would deliberately put May out on injury, possible even ruin her career. There was a risk, of course, but it was a risk all wrestlers took.

She never gave May a chance to do anything in return, she just kept throwing her around the arena. Down to the floor at the side of the ramps she threw May, then leaped down and pounded on her as the cameras zoomed in for close ups. The, she picked her up like a sack of potatoes and threw her onto the metal ramp. She realized that May had been cut and there was a fair amount of bleeding, but hey, those were the breaks, right?

Just as she grabbed May off the floor and was going to throw her down again, "security" came out and tried to stop her. Ronda looked at them, eyes blazing as if she was debating if she should just attack all of them, and then go back to putting the hurt on May. Then, she appeared to reconsider and dropped May on the floor, where she landed, crumpled up like a discarded rag.

Since she didn't have a microphone, not much of the audience could hear what Ronda was saying, but the camera did fix on her face and it was pretty clear she was telling May to never, ever, even _think_ of fucking with her, ever again.

And Ronda had an enormous feeling of satisfaction as May just lay there, crumpled in a heap. "If you _ever_ refer to Seth as 'leftovers' again, I won't just _beat_ you, I'll beat you until you hate your parents for ever having _looked_ at each other!" was her final warning to May, delivered in a lower tone so only May and "security" could hear, saying the words through gritted teeth so no one could read them on her lips. Then, she walked offstage, head held high.

The audience cheered her loudly.

.

{o}-{o}-{o}

Smackdown

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Most people expected May to open the show. After all, the gauntlet had been throw, and Ronda had responded by beating her ruthlessly. Surely she would try to explain, maybe use her getting beaten as a sign that Ronda was weak, only able to attack her when her defenses were down, thus she should get a shot at the RAW Women's Championship.

Instead, Dean, who had the intercontinental belt, came out and made his intentions to be both the IC and Smackdown champion. At first the audience wasn't sure, Dean got good pops, he usually did, but several folks were waiting for May's take on what had happened and weren't sure they wanted to see anything else. Fortunately, Dean managed to be both engaging and irritating enough that people soon forgot and focused their attention on his outlandish claims that he was the _only_ person who should have both championships.

When Mustafa Ali, the current belt holder, came out to _nicely_ tell him that as much as he _respected_ Dean's abilities, he still didn't quite feel that Dean deserved a shot at the championship, Dean attacked him, then grabbed the Smackdown Championship and draped it over his face, almost as if pulling a shroud over a dead man. By the time the segment was over, everyone was making a hell of a lot of noise, either in favor of Dean's behavior, or against it. And, at least in the moment, they seemed satisfied that Dean instead of May had opened.

Nikki Cross came out after a match, to brag endlessly about how she had given May the beat-down she had deserved, and cackled maniacally, there was an air of anticipation, as the audience waited for May to come out and tell Nikki how wrong she was, and maybe start another match. Instead, Sonya DeVille came out to tell Nikki that maybe _some_ folks were afraid of the crazy woman, but Sonya wasn't one of them, and since having the championship was, no doubt, a burden on her already frail grip on sanity, Sonya would be more than happy to relieve her. As expected, Nikki did not react very well to this, and attacked Sonya. But, apparently anticipating this, Sonya got the upper hand and Nikki was forced to run off, holding the championship close to her as she ran backstage. Sonya's music played and she stood in the ring, looking quite happy with the outcome.

May wasn't seen until Dolph had a match with The Miz, who he had a heated rivalry going with. It was common for May to escort Dolph to his matches and vice versa, but Dolph hadn't been seen last night when she invaded RAW, and a lot of folks were convinced that May's attempt to challenge Ronda for the RAW Women's championship was a signal that they would not be showing Dolph and May as the cute, glued at the hip couple anymore. Which, some folks were unhappy about. For a very long time, they had been played at the "it" couple of the WWE, and some folks still loved their messaging back and forth on social media. The two of them managed to look sweet and very much in love, but not to fall overboard into the sickly sweet "cutsie" zone, at least most of the time.

But, when it was announced that May was accompanying Dolph to the ring, and that got a fair amount of pops. Then, as people were used to, Dolph gave her a kiss again danced borders between passionate and respectable. As Dolph got into the ring, May went to take her usual seat at the announcer's table, where Renee greeted her warmly. While the WWE had never made an official statement, most of the fans knew the two women were good friends.

Corey Graves, on the other hand, jumped on May almost before she got her headset on, demanding she tell everyone, himself included, who the hell she thought _she_ was for attacking Ronda last night. The audience wasn't sure if this was to establish that Ronda was the heel in the conflict, or if they were just catering to Renee and May's friendship. In her normal, polite, close to sweet tone May used whenever on the announcer table for Dolph, she told Corey that she wasn't here to discuss her issues, she was here to support her man.

She was being her part of "Zany," a horrible name mashup that the fans had pinned on her and Dolph. It was like the woman who had blasted Ronda out had been a case of temporary insanity and now May was back to normal. There was even speculation on the part of fans watching on TV and tweeting at the same time, if WWE had decided to ditch the whole storyline and just pretend it hadn't happened.

Dolph started out the match with the upper hand, which May cheerfully pointed out, telling everyone that Dolph was the best superstar in the business these days. She was good at building Dolph up, without sounding as if she'd drunk the Kool-aid. Plenty of fans thought that if she ever couldn't wrestle, she could find a place on the announcer's table.

It wasn't even five minutes into the match, when Dolph did the Zig Zag, sending Miz falling to the floor. He looked shocked for a moment, then scrambled over, putting him into the pin position. Dolph's back was to the ramp, facing the table, and he was grinning, no doubt at May who was smiling at him, proudly.

"One, Two," The referee began. The cameras were now close on Dolph's face, and before the referee could get to 'three,' his expression changed to one of alarm, and he jumped off of Miz, going over to the ropes, looking at the Announcer's table.

Camera angle and all attention of the audience went to the announcer's table, where Ronda, who had been hiding somewhere behind the barricade, had jumped up and grabbed May by throwing an arm around her neck, and hauling her to her feet, out of the chair as if trying to choke her.

"Ladies and gentlemen," Cole said, "It seems that Ronda has come here to Smackdown, and she's attacking May!"

"Hey!" Renee shouted, looking worried, "This isn't right!"

"I guess this is Ronda's response to May interrupting her last night," Corey said, his voice jubilant and smug. "Maybe May will learn her place, now."

As Dolph leaned over the ropes to yell at Ronda to stop, advice that Ronda probably didn't even hear, never mind act on, Miz's eyes opened. Scrambling to his feet, he took advantage of the distraction to grab Ziggler and get him into the small package move. The referee ran over.

"One, two, _three!"_

Miz leaped to his feet looking triumphant as he was announced as the winner. But barely anyone noticed, their attention was focused on May and Ronda.

May had raised her hands to Ronda's arm, and managed to pull it away from her neck enough so she could get it from around her neck, and move away quickly. She stared at Ronda, who stared back.

Neither woman had a microphone, so only those closest could hear what the two women were shouting at each other, but it was pretty clear Ronda was here to show May that she was still angry about what had happened on RAW, and that she wasn't ready to just let it go. She made several angry gestures towards May, then leaped over the barricade in one smooth, fluid motion and headed to her.

As Ronda drew close enough, May leaped up, going for a drop kick. She and Ronda had discussed it earlier, and the plans were for May to give her a drop kick to the face, which would not only pay tribute to Dolph, who was known for those types of kicks, but would also show the crowd that May might be short, but she knew how to compensate for that.

Instead, May's leap wasn't nearly as high as it was supposed to be, and she landed the kick at Ronda's side. Ronda's eyes widened, and she gasped, falling onto the floor, seeming to be stunned.

May didn't wait around, she turned from Ronda and headed up the ramp, head held high, sending out a message "You don't have to make a lot of moves, you just have to make the _right_ one."

The camera did a close up on Ronda who was still on the floor, gasping and holding her side, staring after May, a shocked expression on her face.


	3. Chapter 3

**Fakeclaimer: **This means absolutely nothing, the only purpose is to make the chapter number center better. Why? Because I'm anal like that. I like things to center properly. Call it one of my strange quirks.

* * *

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**Chapter Three**

{o}-{o}-{o}

.

"Are you all right?"

Ronda looked up as Seth's voice broke through her fog and forced herself to smile. "I'm fine," she said. "I'm just hoping I'm not too bruised tomorrow." They were sitting together in the "living" area of the hotel they were staying in. One of the perks of being two of the top Sports Entertainers in the WWE, was that the travel allowance was honestly generous. Most of the other stars had to pay their travel expenses themselves, but not Ronda and Seth. And almost always traveling together, allowed them to rent some very nice accommodations for two, that would cost less than each getting a less luxurious single room.

"Do you need another ice pack?" Seth asked, motioning to the one Ronda had on her hip that was soggy and closer to room temperature than cold.

Ronda shrugged, removing the pack and snuggling up closer to him on the couch. "Let's give it twenty minutes, and then you can get me another pack, not that I _need_ it."

"Of course you don't," Seth joked back, pulling her closer to him. "Bruises know better than to bother you!"

It was a joke with some truth behind it. Ronda really wasn't in any pain from the kick, at least not anymore, but there was a good chance of some serious bruising and ice was the best chance to prevent it. It was all right to be bruised in the WWE, as long as it wasn't too ugly and too visible. Yes, there was make-up to help, but as all wrestlers knew, make-up only did so much against those serious bruises that turned your skin to that really dark, blue black. Ice applied as quickly as possible was one of the better ways to keep the dark bruising down.

She wasn't lying about the pain either. Compared to other injuries she'd had before, this barely registered on her pain radar anymore. But what shocked her was that she had felt significant pain _when it had happened_ and for a few minutes afterwards. Yes, it had been really good television when Ronda had fallen to her knees and gaped at May as she walked off, but the gaping was not staged, it was real. May had _hurt_ her, given her a few seconds of mind blowing pain.

And Ronda was almost sure this was not an accident. Her foot hadn't slipped, nothing had gone wrong, May had known _exactly_ what she was doing, even more so, she had known that _Ronda_ would know what she was doing.

There were moves in almost all forms of martial arts that could cause someone intense pain, but cause no permanent damage, they were the cornerstones of a good defense. Someone who was truly trained could easily break bones, dislocate joints, but that wasn't always a good idea. Someone who truly knew what they were doing, could land moves that would make their opponent _wish_ they were dead, for anywhere up to a few minutes to a few hours. Some moves could be done so even bruising was nearly impossible.

_Either May knew exactly what she was doing, or, one of us is the luckiest women in the world, _Ronda thought, snapping the band on her wrist. _And I'm going to go with A. _

"Are you thinking about May?" Seth asked.

Ronda turned and looked up at him, trying to hide her surprise. "Actually, yeah, I was. How did you know?"

Seth grinned. "You had that frown on your face you get when you're thinking of something you find distasteful."

"May isn't the _only_ thing I find distasteful, Asshole," she grinned, and playfully punched his chest.

"True, you find _many_ things distasteful," Seth said, still grinning as he rubbed his hand where she had punched him. "But, since you're in a conflict with May and it was her that gave you the kick that you're afraid is going to turn into a bruise, it's not that hard to put it together. And if that wasn't enough," he pointed to her wristband, that was cracking a little on the edges, so she'd have to get another one. "You've been snapping that all day."

He had her there, and she shook her head. "You know me too well."

There had been a time when Ronda's ego had gotten so far out of control that Seth, and their dear friend Maggie had both thought she had NPD, Narcissistic Personality Disorder. And, looking back on it, Ronda understood why they had felt that way, she was showing all the signs of it. Inflated ego, inflated sense of self, anger and jealousy over anyone who was seen as getting "more" than she was. As it turned out, Ronda's troubles had gone deeper than that, and with the help of a psychiatrist, it was found that her problems were almost the opposite. She felt things strongly, so strongly that a series of tragedy, starting as a child when her father had taken his life, had lead her to not only put a hard shell around her heart, but to erect a twelve foot concrete and steel wall of self importance to protect her even further. If she was the most important person in the universe, then nothing could hurt her, right?

The WWE universe had fed right into that subconscious ego trip she'd lived with. It was a tribute to her charisma that Ronda had been loved and adored when she started at the WWE. The face of all faces, her fans went as far as to tell her they would happily step in front of trains, buses, or take bullets for her. All that did was erect the ego wall higher.

It had taken a lot of work and self examination, but Ronda had learned to open up, at least to people she trusted. Maggie, Seth, Charlotte, and a few other girls in WWE. And for the most part, they knew the true her, the woman who wasn't incapable of empathy, but sometimes felt things so strongly that she had to close herself off to the world, and only allow the part of her that had too much ego to feel pain to run the show.

She tried not to let the ego out to play, but so many years of letting it run the show made it hard for her to keep her temper in check, keep her from always being frustrated at others, especially others she felt had wronged her. But she was trying, and the wristbands were helping.

At one point, one of her biggest merchandising items were her wristbands. You could get your name on them, and one fan had even legally changed her name to Ronda Rousey, just so she could get the name of her favorite superstar on them. It was heady stuff, and they still sold them. Ronda considered them the physical representation of the height of her ego, and she wore a wristband now to remind her that her defense was to drive up her ego. But the wristband Ronda wore now was black and more like a thick rubber band than a wristband. it had no name on it, just a plain black band. She had trained herself that whenever she sensed her ego was at risk of taking over, when she found her thoughts riding down the path of destruction, she would snap the band against the inside of her wrist. The tiny, but sharp bit of pain was a mental wake up call, "Don't get carried away."

Despite skepticism expressed by some of the folks closest to her, it worked. At first she had a tiny bruise on her inner wrist and she had to put on a new band twice a week, as the old one would get so stretched out it would slide off her hand. Now the bruise was gone and sometimes it took over a month for the band to be useless. Except for days like today.

He ran his fingers through her hair. "Are you two going to be okay with this?" His voice was just the right level of concern without sounding condescending.

"With our history?" Ronda prompted, smiling. "Nah, I don't have an issue with her over that, I won the prize after all."

Seth beamed. "Me? A prize?" He pretended to look shocked.

"Yes, Asshole," she said, using the nickname she had given him way back when.

"So are you, Gattina," he leaned over to kiss her. "The best prize of all."

She returned the kiss, but pulled away, not wanting thing to get too heavy, before she had a chance to ice down the bruise one more time. "Does May know any Martial Arts?" she asked, out of genuine curiosity, and to distract him.

Seth chuckled, "You really don't know much about her, do you?"

Ronda shook her head. "I know she was considered a gymnastic protege when she was younger, and probably would have been in the Olympics if she hadn't gone into wrestling." That was common knowledge, to the point where Ronda wasn't sure if she'd been told that, or just absorbed it from the atmosphere. It was like her taking the bronze in the Olympics, in Judo, there was some information that was repeated so often that after a bit, it seemed to soak into everything and everyone, to the point where it seemed nobody was told, but everyone knew.

"Her Grandfather is some type of martial arts expert," Seth said, shrugging. "There are a lot of rumors about him, but according to May, he was a military brat, and spent most of his childhood and young adulthood in Japan, because his father was actually as fluent in Japanese. So is he and May, too. I think the whole family is, except for her Dad. When he was really young, he got involved in martial arts, and was good enough at it that he ended up traveling around to various dojos to learn under various masters. He's never been in the competitive end of things, never tried to join the Olympics or anything like that, just _really_ into learning. There are rumors that he was trained as a Ninja or a Samurai, or both, but May says if he was, he hasn't shared it with the family. Considering how close May is to the man, I would say it's just rumors, because he'd probably have told her."

"What's his name?"

"Logan Devany." Seth tipped her head to one side, "I'd think you'd have known that much, seeing that May uses Devany as her wrestling name."

Ronda shrugged. "I knew her real last name is Parker, but I never knew why she picked Devany for the last name." What she didn't add, was that she never really cared enough to wonder. The name Logan Devany prickled something in the back of her mind, making her think she might have heard it, but it wasn't sparking any memories. She might have heard the name listening to May prattling in the locker room, god knew the only topic of conversation the woman seemed animated about was her jumbo sized family. _Her sister Raven is a runt, I'll bet the whole family is. That's probably why her parents had thirteen kids. Tiny people wanting to compensate by having a big family. _ She snapped the band again. Something though, kept scratching at the corner of her mind. "Logan Devany," she murmured and for a moment, an image flashed of a man with dark hair, sideburns, no beard, a look close to what Punk had once, but beyond that, the resemblance to Punk ended. This guy had an ageless quality to him, as if he looked older than his age by the time he was thirty and now looked younger than his age. Maybe it was him, but that might just mean she'd seen him backstage when the WWE was in New York. Rumor was that the man worked security and was often hired to work backstage at a lot of WWE events, Ronda probably _had_ seen him before. Hell, he might have even been part of her bodyguard staff at one of the several movie premiers she had done in New York. "Okay, so Grandfather knows a lot about martial arts, did he teach May?"

"Yeah, he did," Seth said. "From what May told me, he was insistent that _all_ the kids and grandkids learn. The family lives in New York, and Mama Michelle is, I guess what you'd call a bit of a free range parent. May told me stories about her being eight and going by subway with her older brother Calvin to get to her gymnastic lessons or other places, no adults. When May visits, she still trains with her grandfather, or helps him with the younger kids. But, Grandpa insists the kids know it for self defense purposes." Seth reported all of this in the voice of a bored museum guide, as if it were common knowledge about someone he used to know. Nothing about him, neither tone of voice or body language said that he was impressed by this, or a little proud that this tiny powerhouse had once been his girlfriend. "The one who is _really_ good at it is Raven," he continued and he looked a little more excited about Raven than her sister. "May went into gymnastics and kept up on the martial arts to help her become a wrestler. Raven wanted to be a wrestler too, but she just stuck with martial arts until she could take over May's job at ESW. Word is, she could have gone into MMA if she'd wanted to. When I was dating May, if she and her sister were in the same place, they'd spar. Hell, they probably still do. It's pretty cool to watch. Not as cool as watching _you_ spar," he added hastily. "Raven is tiny, like May, but she's got _major_ attitude. She gets a look on her face like she won't stop until you're dead." He paused and grinned. "In that, she reminds me of you. She's got that look of mean determination."

Ronda knew Seth enough to know he meant the comparison as a compliment. Seth loved strong women, which was one of the reasons why they worked so well together. And, she had always believed, one of the reasons why Seth and May were doomed before they ever got started.

Ronda looked down at her hip, which was still more pink than black and blue, but it was showing a few signs of turning colors. _Maybe they weren't as doomed as I thought._ It didn't matter, maybe he was attracted to strong women, but she was the only woman for him and Ronda knew that.

"Do you want some more ice?" Seth asked.

Ronda looked at the cable box, which told the time, too. "Yeah, I can ice it another twenty minutes." She sat up. "I can get it though."

"No, let me," Seth rose to his feet and headed over to the kitchenette.

_That's love,_ Ronda thought. _It's not about romance and flowers, it's being willing to get up when you're comfortable to get the person you love something they need, so they can be more comfortable, too. _

.

{o}-{o}-{o}

.

_I saw what you did tonight, and I'm not happy._

May looked at the text from her grandfather and sigh, regretting the day she had taught him how to text. "With texting, you can talk to me any time and unlike email, if I'm around, I'll get it and we can go back and forth."

He had been reluctant at first, but once he got the hang of it, he began using it all the time, not just with her, but with the rest of the family. Rarely did a day go by that they didn't exchange texts, even if it was just to wish each other good morning and later, good night.

This, however, wasn't going to be a case of, "Gotta get some sleep, Grandpa, I love you!" If she didn't respond to his texting, he was going to call her. She looked over at Dolph, who was lying on the bed in their hotel room, watching TV. She had been hoping the two of them could have a little "us" time, but the narrow window was closing fast, if she wanted to get some sleep tonight. "Grandpa texted," she said. "I have to respond."

Dolph smiled. "I understand. At least he probably doesn't need to be nursed through a broken heart."

He was referring to the last time the both of them had the day off together, when her sister Shelly had started texting her, upset because she and her boyfriend had just broken up. May had spent a good portion of that day, both texting and on the phone with her. Dolph said he understood, and May believed he really did, but it was still annoying, she was certain. "No," she said, "But it might be a little longer than usual."

"It's okay," he said. "I knew that getting you meant getting your family too."

Gratefully, she laid down in the bed next to him and started texting her grandfather.

_**I know, Grandpa.**_

_I thought I taught you better than that. That was a straight martial arts move, that was not wrestling modified. And you probably gave Ms. Rousey a hell of a bruise that's going to be hard to cover if she doesn't ice it quick. _

The problem with being a great texter, was that you actually could type faster than you could think. _**If I made any marks, she can wear her girl Shield outfit**_**.**

_May!_

_**Yeah, I know Grandpa, that was cold. But honestly, she knows how to ice and wardrobe knows how to work with bruises.**_

_She could get you into serious trouble. And it would serve you right! _

That was true, Ronda could report her for the move, and Ronda might even be able to convince The Powers That Be that she was right. Ronda knew what May had done, May knew Ronda knew. Hell, that was exactly why she'd done it. _**It's my word against hers**_**.**

_Why? _

May could picture him now, her grandfather, sitting in "his" chair in front of the TV, watching some old western, or maybe even NJPW, which he had something that enabled him to watch it in Japanese, one of the many things he did to keep his language skills sharp. And texting that one word to May. One simple word, but she knew it was more than that one word. It was "Why did you do that, May? I didn't teach you what you know so you could use for some petty revenge game. I taught it to you so you could protect yourself and so you would know _better_ than to get involved in petty revenge games." _**I'm sorry, Grandpa, I don't know why I did it**_**. **

_Bullshit! _

May didn't want to tell him the truth, that she had just gotten angry at Ronda and she didn't quite know why. She thought her and Ronda had settled things ages ago, that everything, if not quite perfect, had at least fallen into an uneasy truce between the two of them. She wasn't upset that Ronda had Seth, the two of them were as perfect for each other as she and Dolph were. But something had pushed her buttons. _**Okay, Grandpa, I did it because I'm tired of her thinking she won. That's the first reason**_**.**

_Thinking she won?_

_**Yes! I know, it's all water under the bridge, and I really don't care that Seth and I broke up, I was over that ages ago, but whenever she's with him and she sees me, I get this smug little smile from her. It's irritating. Even Seth doesn't do that, and he's got enough ego to think I'd still carry a torch for him. Even Seth realizes I've moved way past him**_**. **

_So, you're telling me you bruised up that woman because of a LOOK? _

She started to type, "Well, when you put it that way," but luckily caught herself before she could hit send. She snuggled up to Dolph on the bed, and he put his arm around her, still watching TV. May knew he could lean over and see what she and her grandfather were texting about, she also knew he wouldn't. Meanwhile, her phone pinged to let her know other folks were messaging her. She paused from Grandpa for a moment, just to text her mother that she was talking to grandpa. Anyone else texting her would have to suck it up for tonight. When she was done with her grandfather, she was shutting down her phone for the night. _**Okay, I also did it because I wanted her to know I'm not just the former gymnast.**_

_? _

She should have expected that and just explained in the first place. Grandpa's texting was more abrupt and less wordy than his conversations but he got his point across.

_**I just get the feeling she thinks I'm a joke, that is, when she thinks of me at all. Don't get me wrong, I like the idea that I only register on her radar when I have to, but when I do, I get this feeling that she thinks I'm a joke. I know she won a bronze in the Olympics for her Judo, so I know she's damned good and I don't want to take that away from her. I just wanted her to understand that if it ever came down to it? I can hold my own with her. She might beat me in the end, but I'm not just some tiny woman who did gymnastics and then decided to be a wrestler because I thought it might be cool. That if I'd wanted to make my way in the martial arts world, I could have. Probably not the Olympics, but I sure could have done MMA.**_

The response took longer to come, no doubt because Grandpa was reading what she wrote and thinking about it. Or, he was watching NJPW, and something exciting had happened, it was hard to tell. While she waited, she shifted position and rested her head on Dolph's chest. "I'm sorry," she murmured.

"It's all right," Dolph smiled reassuringly. "I get it. Your grandfather is the patriarch of the family. When he wants to talk to you, you talk to him."

"Wow, you make our family sound like a dynasty or something."

"If the shoe fits." Dolph grinned. "I'm just saying it's okay, May. If you cut him off before the two of you are done talking, you'll both be pissed off. Get it done."

"God, what did I do to deserve you?" May asked, leaning over and kissing his chest.

"You were just born lucky, I guess," He tightened his arm around her and leaned over to kiss the top of her head.

As she smiled up at him, her phone made a noise that sounded like someone was rapping on a wooden door, the noise she had assigned for her grandfather's messages. For his phone calls, she had a ring that sounded like an old fashioned telephone.

_Part of what I THOUGHT you learned from me was that it doesn't MATTER what other people think. _

_**Yes, and it doesn't until it does. I don't know exactly why I did it. I really thought anything with Ronda was under the bridge. It isn't like I want Seth or anything. I don't envy her acting career, or her life for the most part. **_

_The most part? _

_Keep digging, grandpa, _May thought as she texted back. _**The most part. Mostly, she moves in her circles, I move in mine. And normally, I'm happy to be in my circle. But, like it or not, Smackdown is the B show. And the only reason why I'm never allowed to go on the A show is because that's considered "Ronda's show." **_

_Smackdown has gotten much better over the years and a lot of that is you._

_**Thank you, Grandpa, you do my ego good, but I'd say a lot more of that goes to Charlotte than me. And Becky, and some of the other girls. Not that I'm unhappy, I have a good run and it's still going. But, sometimes I just get so frustrated. Everyone in the locker room has been on both shows, unless they just came up. Except for me. I'm always on Smackdown. And I get it, at first I was the constant reminder that Seth had once been going out with me. But seriously, everyone acts like Seth was already married to Ronda and had gone off on a two year fling with me and it's not true! Yes, I started going out with Seth before he'd officially broken it off, but how many times can I say that he told me they were over? A million? A million and six? I've paid my dues for that one. And it pisses me off because I got branded, but Seth, the one who actually did the lying, got a pass on that. Nobody called Seth a whore. That was reserved for me. What the fuck does it mean when Seth is allowed to tell me lies, but I'm a whore for believing him? **_ She knew her grandfather, unlike her mother, wouldn't care that she had sworn. He probably barely noticed it.

_Who called you a whore? _

_**I don't want to talk about it.**_ Unable to stop herself, May felt her eyes prickling. May was supposed to be the sweet one, the nice one, but some fans were really furious with her for having dated Seth. Over the years, many had forgiven her, especially when she started dating Dolph and they'd put on YouTube, waltzing together to _Years From Now,_ an old song from the '70s. But, there was a time when Ronda's zombie army of fans took great delight in attempting to cover her facebook and tweets with accusations that she was a whore, slut, every other name in the book. Sure, a few gave Seth a hard time, but most of the venom went in her direction. Some had even spilled over towards Dolph, but amazingly, Dolph was cool about it. His standard response, when he was forced to give it, was simple. "I don't care what May did in the past, May doesn't care what I did in the past. What's important to both of us, is our future." If they still tried to engage him, he ignored them.

"Are you okay, babe?" Dolph asked, hearing her sniffling.

She nodded, refusing to look at him. "I-I'm almost done," she stammered, hoping that was true.

_Fuck, do people still call you that? _

_**No, not for the most part, we've all moved on, but that burned for awhile. I thought I was over it, but I guess I wasn't. I was wrong, and I'll try to make it right, if I can. That's all I can do. **_

_I wish I'd known._

_**I wasn't going to tell you, Grandpa, and neither was the rest of the family. We knew it would hurt you. It hurt Mom bad enough. And it's over, but for a moment, I just… lost it. **_

_Well, make sure you don't lose it again. It wasn't Ronda calling you a whore, was it? _

May knew that was her grandfather's way of telling her that the discussion was over. _**No, it wasn't Ronda who called me that. It was just her fanbase. I won't lose it again, I promise. I love you, Grandpa.**_

_I love you too, Go Gatsu. Now, go spend some time with your man. What the hell are you doing, wasting your time with an old man like me? _

_**It's never a waste of time to talk to you, Grandpa. **_

"_GO!" _

She smiled and closed the message screen and looked at Dolph. "He's pretty much ordered me to spend time with you."

He laughed. Taking the phone from her hand, he pressed the power button, and then turned it off on the screen. "Did I ever tell you how much I like your grandfather?" He leaned over her and put the phone on her nightstand.

"I'm glad," May said, wrapping her arms around him, pulling herself near to him. "But, right now, I'd rather not think of my grandfather."

"Fine by me," Dolph said. He wrapped his arms around her and drew her in, kissing her.

* * *

**Author** **Notes**: A lot of the gaming world May comes from, uses characters from the Marvel universe. So, if you're a huge fan of Marvel Comics, a lot of names, when it comes to May, might sound very familiar. Naturally, because this is a wrestling story, nobody in this version of May and her family have superpowers. But, if you were thinking, "Short? And his name is Logan? Wow, that sounds an awful lot like Wolverine!" there is a reason for that.


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer:** Cesaro and Sheamus are sitting at a bar. "You've told me so much about Ireland," Cesaro says. "I really feel like I know the country. But, I don't feel I've ever told you much about Switzerland."

"What are you talking about?" Sheamus says, rolling his eyes. "You've told me lots about Switzerland."

"Oh?" Cesaro says. "Well, if I have, tell me, what's the best thing about Switzerland?"

"I don't know what you think the absolute best thing is," Sheamus admits, "but I know you consider your flag a big plus."

* * *

**.**

**Chapter Four**

{o}-{o}-{o}

.

Both Ronda and May had known that the WWE wasn't taking any chances on this one, and they had been told there were three possible outcomes. If the ratings and fan reaction to May and Ronda's conflict were not "up to expectations" then their match might never happen, or happen on RAW the next week, just to get it out of the way. If it met expectations, it would be in the next PPV. If it exceeded what was expected, it would be a main event match.

Neither May nor Ronda were told anything until they reported to the arena for RAW. As coincidence would have it, as Seth and Ronda arrived at the arena, so did May and the three of them entered through the stage door together.

Their eyes hadn't had a chance to adjust to the darker, indoor light, when one of Dan's interns came running up and slapped scripts into Seth, Ronda, and May's hands. The intern was female, with a long, drawn out face and long, straight, hair, reminding Ronda of an Afghan hound. _ Damn you, May, _she thought, _ I'm not going to be able to look at any of the interns without trying to figure out what dog they resemble. _

Her fingers went to the band, but she didn't snap it. The interns didn't stick around long enough that Ronda needed to be afraid she'd laugh in their faces.

She was watching Afghan puppy running down the hall, stack of scripts in her hands, probably heading to catering. May was walking as well, but she had shifted her duffel bag to one shoulder and had opened the script. "We at least met expectations," she said.

Ronda looked at her. May must have sensed she was being looked at, because she never took her eyes off the script, but answered the unspoken question. "You have a match tonight with Sasha banks, and I'm going to interrupt it."

"Okay, what happens?" Ronda asked.

"The usual," May said, closing the script and shrugging. "But it ends with Triple H coming out and telling us we can settle things at the next PPV."

"I wasn't really worried we wouldn't," Ronda said confidently.

"I wasn't either," May said, shrugging. "You always put your heart into every storyline. I'll be more surprised if we don't make it to main event."

Ronda flashed a look at May. The expression on her face was one of total sincerity and for a moment, Ronda was too startled to do anything, but keep walking. Then, she collected herself. "You're easy to work with than I thought you would be," she said. She realized that could be taken wrong and inwardly winced, but didn't let it show.

May grinned, taking it the way Ronda intended it. "Thank you." There was a pause, then she added, "I think it helps that the both of us can draw on the past for motivation."

.

{o}-{o}-{o}

.

Sometimes it surprised May that Ronda rarely insisted on a private dressing room. She was important enough to command such perks, but she rarely took advantage of the offer, at least not for RAW or for house shows.

_I don't know if she'll admit it,_ May thought, as they entered the locker room together. _But I think she likes having company. _This was a pretty big change from the Ronda of old. _What else has changed about her, that I haven't bothered to notice? _She realized that she had gotten so used to thinking she was a victim in the whole Ronda/Seth/her triangle, that she'd spoiled herself with thinking that Ronda and Seth would stay stagnant, at least when it came to her.

She could hear her mother in her head, warning her that you don't judge and you don't let sour thoughts lead to a sour person. _You would think, with all the kids, that Mom wouldn't have the time to get into our heads. Well, that's wrong._

The locker room was fairly quiet when they walked in. Ronda went to an empty locker and started putting her stuff into it. May figured she would stash her gear and then head to catering to get something to eat and look over her script, because that's what most folks did. She drew in a deep breath and went to a locker, not right next to Ronda, but close. _It's now or never_ she told herself. "Ronda?"

The blonde woman turned and looked at her with an expression May found uncomfortably unreadable. _It would be nice to know if I'm irritating her_ "Look, last Tuesday? I was an asshole."

"When?" Ronda asked, her voice bland. "It was a long day."

_Nice,_ May thought. _Either pretend you didn't feel that kick, or imply that I am so much of an asshole that finding one particular time is hard. Two points to you. _"The kick," she said.

"Oh, that," Ronda's brow furrowed in puzzlement, but May knew she was putting it on. "Was I too tall for you to get up where you were supposed to? My_ face?"_

"Touche, Ronda," May said, grinning. "Smack me down and throw in a good short joke while you're at it. But seriously, I _know_ you knew what I did. And you know it was a douche move on my part."

Ronda looked at her for almost two seconds, taking her in, then spoke. "I could get you in trouble," she said. "But, to pull a move like that means you have some serious skills and I respect that."

.

{o}-{o}-{o}

.

Ronda was a little surprised when May apologize for the kick. She thought they would both just pretend it never happened. No harm no foul and since she had iced it quickly, the bruise had been small enough to cover with her outfit.

_I don't think I would have apologized_, she thought _Not if I were in her shoes. _

.

{o}-{o}-{o}

**Raw**

.

May was listed on the final card, which meant that the audience kept expecting her to make an appearance. The WWE tried to tease them out, letting Ronda open the show, where she proudly bragged that if May dare show her face on RAW again, May wouldn't make it to Smackdown the next day, because Ronda would kick her hard enough to send her into the next week Smackdown instead. The audience cheered, but Ronda knew they were waiting for _Cold Machines_ to start and for May to come out. When Sasha's music started and she came out, you could hear the groan of disappointment. It was not a fun way to come out, Ronda knew, even though she had rarely experienced it herself. It did no one's ego any good to be the disappointment.

But, being a professional, Sasha acted as if the crowd was cheering wildly for her, striding to the ring, her head held high.

She also had no problem using May in her promo either, which Ronda knew had not been part of the script, but no one had told her she _couldn't_ use it, either. "May's got _better_ things to do than to mess with the likes of you," Sasha said, almost the moment she had a microphone in her hand.

"It's too bad _you_ don't," Ronda countered, which wasn't expected, but it worked to startle Sasha. Ronda wasn't too fond of the woman, when Ronda had returned to WWE, Sasha had been one of the most vocal in the locker room about people getting "Special privileges" while the rest of them had to "Do their work for them." Ronda knew she had tried to get May to join the Discontent Minions, thinking May would be an easy recruit, but May had been smart enough to stay out of it completely, even though, or probably just because May had the most reason to be bitter. _ May may have had reasons, but she isn't stupid_. _You, on the other hand, need to learn to shut up_.

However, now was not the time for Sasha to shut up, unless she really wanted to put a nail in the coffin that would eventually end her career. Every wrestler had only so many mistakes they could make in front of the camera, before it killed their career. Rumor had it that 21 nails used to be put in a coffin to seal it shut, especially for folks in the Military, and Ronda figured that 21 chances were all anyone deserved. And most of those twenty-ones had better be minor. Wrestlers were never supposed to be short for words, and Ronda's comeback had pushed Sasha dangerously close to that. If they had talked a minute or so longer, Sasha could have just thrown the microphone to the ground and attacked Ronda, but it was a little too soon for that. _Your fault for giving me such an easy opening to verbally slap you across the face._

"Unlike _you_, Ronda, May knows she doesn't have to come here and take out the trash, she knows she had _friends_ over here who are happy to help her out. Unlike you."

_Oh, underhanded hint that I'm not as popular with the locker room as May,_ Ronda thought, _My heart would break, if I gave a shit._ "Really? Then why did she have to come here, looking for a shot at _my_ championship last week?" Before Sasha could answer, Ronda talked right over her, "Even _May_ recognizes there's no competition in the locker room for me. Certainly not from the likes of _you."_

As Ronda expected, Sasha started getting up into Ronda's face, and Ronda held her ground. Both women had discarded their microphones, and were having the stare down to end all stare downs when Triple H came out. Much to the surprise of no one, he told the girls they would be having a match later that night.

.

{o}-{o}-{o}

_Backstage Raw_

.

May was in catering, texting two of her sisters, alternating back and forth, as she waited backstage. Dolph was back at the hotel, hopefully avoiding a cold by getting some serious sleep and May was hoping_ she_ wasn't going to also have to fight a cold. There were no casual sick days at the WWE. If you were out, you'd better be seriously ill or seriously injured. May had this annoying tendency to get sick like a kid. She would get seriously ill for a day or two, usually just one, then be fine the next. While this was really handy most of the time, that one day was hard. When it was on Smackdown day, it was _murder_.

_**I'm really hoping I skip this one**_, she texted to Shelly.

_Do you have any of Mom's onion and honey cold syrup? _

_**No. I gave the last bottle to some girls in the back and I forgot to tell Mom. **_

Michelle Devany Parker made almost everything her family needed from scratch, right down to various medicines. She wasn't one of those women who was afraid of modern medicine, all thirteen kids had always had all their vaccinations, and had always gone to doctors yearly, but when it came to things like cold and cough syrup, she had a bunch of different recipes she had found and tried. She didn't proclaim these to be cures, they were merely to relieve symptoms and for that, most of them worked just fine. Her honey and onion syrup for colds was popular. Not for the taste, it tasted sweetly vile, but because it actually did seem to relieve symptoms.

May had taken a lot of ribbing in the locker room about her "Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman" medications, but when she had shared her honey and onion syrup with Alicia and Paige, the teasing turned into curiosity as both woman swore it not only made them feel better, but they really believed it helped them get over their colds, faster. Now, when her mother sent her homemade medications, the girls in the locker room were eager to see what they were and to test them out. Which was nice, except that May ended up forgetting to ask for more.

_I'll tell Mom to send you some more. _

_**Thank you. Tell her to send a few bottles. If Dolph has a cold and I am coming down with one, there's going to be a backstage epidemic. **_

_I will. _

_**Thanks.**_ May was just about to flick over to Raven, the other sister she was texting with, when someone sat down at the table, causing her to look up. When she saw who it was, she almost dropped her phone, even had to fumble with it, but managed to keep it in her hands. She decided not to acknowledge the person right away, even though they were clearly expecting it. Instead, she quickly texted both Raven and Shelly the same message. _**Something's come up, I'll talk to you later.**_

She closed out the text function and looked at her unexpected table mate. "Hello, Roman." It was hard to read the man, at least for her, but she studied him, looking for hints. He didn't look completely hostile, nor did he look like talking to her was so beneath him that he was already bored, two looks she was semi familiar with. _Things have been going so well with the two of us, _she thought, as if he could read her mind, _ let's not fuck it up by trying to have a conversation. _

"Hello, May."

A bit stiff, but, like his expression, not openly hostile. "I'm assuming you didn't decide to join me because I'm such awesome company," she said, the corners of her mouth turning up to show she was being playful instead of snarky.

He looked confused for a moment, and May imagined him processing her smile and her comment and his brain slowly trying to work out what she had meant and how to respond to it. She could have been helpful, she could have asked him what was up, allowing him an opening, but she decided instead to let him figure it out. "Seth tells me you and Ronda are getting along," he finally said.

"I'm surprised _Ronda_ didn't tell you that," May said brightly. "Didn't the two of you have leg day in the gym today? Or, was it arm day? I admit, I don't keep up on your gym schedule, unlike the rest of the WWE universe."

He frowned. "Ronda had some PR work to do this morning, I was at the gym with Seth and Dean today."

_He is not that dense,_ May told herself, _you just throw him off his stride. No surprise, considering what you figured out. _

Roman and May had never gotten along, not when she dated Seth, not when Seth left her to return to Ronda. Roman had always made a huge show of snubbing her, such as refusing to sit at the same table with Seth or even Dean if they were sitting with May. When May started dating Dolph, it became less obvious to outsiders, but the tension had still been there. Then, they were thrown together to fulfill a wish for two kids, and accidentally, May had discovered that when Seth and Ronda had broken up, Roman had slept with Ronda. May knew Roman and Ronda thought of themselves as brother and sister, or at least they had at one point, and she was pretty sure they did now, but for at least one night, the two of them either indulged in an incest fantasy, or forgot that innocent relationship.

Roman hadn't confessed, but she had accidentally suggested that's what might have happened, and the way Roman reacted, turning as white as skim milk and being speechless, pretty much told her all she needed to know. She had also told him she would keep this information to herself, not for his sake, but for the sake of his wife, his child, even for Ronda and Seth themselves. This had lead to an uneasy sort-of truce, where they would raise their heads to each other in the hall, a half nod to show that they were aware of the others existence and wherever they were at the time was neutral territory. As far as May could remember, they hadn't talked at all since that day, other than to exchange information when absolutely necessary. Such as, "Vince is looking for you."

"You look miserable," May said, tipping her head to one side. "Is it _that_ unpleasant to talk to me? I mean, we had such a _great_ conversation in the limo that afternoon." She couldn't resist bringing up the location of the 'discovery.' "We've been _so_ good at civilly ignoring each other ever since, so I would gather whatever you need to tell me or ask me is pretty damned serious. So, let's get to it, _Mr._ Reigns."

He looked startled for a moment, then drew in a deep breath. As he did, May saw Ronda enter catering and head in their direction. For a moment, she froze, just a moment, but it was all that was needed for Ronda to get close. "You haven't told Ronda, have you?" Roman asked.

May cringed. _He's going to think I saw this coming and didn't warn him!_

"She hasn't told me, what?" Ronda asked, sitting down at the table with them.

_This is not my circus! _May knew she was making things harder for Roman, but she leaped from her seat. "I need to call Dolph and see how he's feeling," she said, "And I'd like some privacy." Without waiting for either of the other members of the table to say anything, she hurried off.


	5. Chapter 5

**Fakeclaimer: **Yes, I am going to keep putting up bad jokes. Because that's how I roll. And speaking of a roll? What is the difference between a well dressed man on a unicycle and a man dressed in rags on a bicycle?

Attire.

* * *

.

**Chapter Five**

{o}-{o}-{o}

.

After talking to Roman, Ronda didn't have a chance to talk to May before the match with Sasha, which didn't put her in a good mood at all. Putting her up against Sasha was probably a bad idea, Ronda didn't like the woman when things were great, it would be way too easy to decide Sasha would be perfect to take out her frustrations on. She wouldn't permanently hurt the woman, but May wasn't the only one who knew how to cause extreme pain without leaving any permanent damage.

In the end, it was probably her strong disliking for Sasha that ended up keeping her safe from Ronda's wrath. Sasha was always looking for excuses to blame Ronda for anything and everything. She wasn't going to give the woman a grand opening to complain. _If I got her enough to cause bruising, she'd be petty enough to deliberately not ice it, just to get sympathy. I don't need that, so the bitch is safe._

Fortunately, she did get the chance to put her in an Armbar and she couldn't help but make it a little more like martial arts and a little less like wrestling and she appreciated it when Sasha started slamming her hand on the mat, a little harder than normal. Ronda suspected it wasn't Sasha's need to sell it, it was an honest reaction. Even better, she was allowed to ignore the referee's orders to break it.

May came running down the ramp, her music not playing, an attempt to make this look as if it was all spur of the moment. She slid into the ring, while Ronda pretended not to hear, not to notice the crowd had all turned their attention to the ramp, and continued to watch her as she slid into the ring. She even pretended not to hear Renee, Michael, and Cory exclaiming their shock that May was here.

May rushed over to Ronda, grabbing on her hair and yanking it, a heel move, but it was counteracted a bit by Ronda having refused to break her Armbar, even after Sasha had tapped out. Ronda let May drag her away from Sasha, who rolled out of the ring and ran off, a cowardly move that Ronda could see her doing if all of this was real, too.

When Sasha was gone, Ronda and May started with a stare down, which lead to shoving, which lead to the two of them brawling across the ring. The audience cheered and whooped, clearly enjoying the impromptu battle taking place. Both girls knew the score and put on what looked like a good old-fashioned cat fight, stopping just short of ripping the clothes off of each other.

They didn't get to far though, when _Bow Down to the Kin_g started playing. Both women pretended not to hear it, until Hunter called out to them. "Ladies! Stop it!"

They both stopped and turned to him.

"This is a disgrace," he said, shaking his head.

Both Ronda and May started shouting, and even though they didn't have microphones, it was clear each was blaming the other for this unscheduled brawl. Hunter raised one hand and shook his head, sadly. "I don't care why this happened, I just want it to stop."

Ronda stopped, looking as if she was considering what he was saying. May shook her head and shouted up at him. While most of the audience couldn't hear what she said, Ronda could. "She's been running roughshod over the entire locker room, she needs to be stopped, and no one seems to be up for the job!"

Triple H shook his head, obviously not hearing and not caring. "May, what are you doing out here in the first place?" His voice dripped with fake surprise, "This isn't Smackdown!" Without waiting for an answer, he turned to Ronda "And why are you provoking her?"

Ronda yelled, protesting that she was provoking May. Hadn't May come to RAW first? Sure, Ronda had gotten revenge at Smackdown last week, but she never would have gone there if May hadn't started it!

"It's clear that the two of you have _issues_ that need to be resolved," Hunter said, apparently not caring what either of them had to say. "And this has to stop." He directed his gaze to Ronda, "It's obvious to me that you were right about one thing, there doesn't seem to be anyone in the back who is challenging you lately." He focused on May, "And, it's obvious to me, May, that you are looking for a shot at Ronda's championship."

Both women nodded and started talking, trying to get Hunter's attention over the other one, but Hunter ignored their attempts and continued talking. "So, tomorrow, on Smackdown, we'll be having a contract signing. The two of you will settle this at _Hell _in a _Cell!" _

He turned as if to leave, then stopped and turned back. "And ladies? It will _be_ a _Hell_ in a _Cell _match!" And with that, he did turn and leave the stage.

And Ronda and May stood there, staring after him, as the crowd roared their approval.

.

{o}-{o}-{o}

.

They were barely backstage, when Ronda grabbed May by the arm and practically dragged her towards the womens locker room. "Er, is something on your mind?" May asked.

"We have to talk." They were at the locker room door, and Ronda used her hip to push open the door, then pulled May in with her.

The only person in the locker room was Sasha, who was dressed in street clothing and packing up her duffel bag. When she saw Ronda and May come in, she nodded and looked ready to greet them, but then she saw Ronda's hand gripping May's upper arm and her eyes narrowed."

"Get the fuck out, Banks," Ronda barked.

"Excuse me?" Sasha asked, rearing back as if slapped.

"Ronda is a little anxious," May said, shrugging as if being dragged around by the woman was a perfectly normal occurrence. "She heard I knew who stole the cookies from the cookie jar, and I promised I'd tell her, but _only_ her."

Ronda stared at her with a look of irritated confusion. Sasha's brows furrowed trying to figure out if May had gone insane or was just having one over on them. _Of all the stupid things to say, _May thought. She knew why she had thought of that silly game she and her siblings had played when she was younger, but why in the world did she decide to say something out loud?

_Who stole the cookies from the cookie jar?_

_I'll bet you, May stole the cookies from the cookie jar!_

_Who, me?_

_Yes, you!_

_Couldn't be! _

_Then who stole the cookies from the cookie jar? _

_I'll bet you Grace stole the cookies from the cookie jar!_

With thirteen kids, the game could go on for a very long time and drive their parents crazy. But, "I know who stole the cookies from the cookie jar" because a code phrase among her and her family for, "I need some privacy with this person, so leave us alone."

When you had twelve brothers and sisters, you had to respect privacy rules, or life would have been chaos. She looked at Sasha and hoped her expression told her she and Ronda needed privacy and it wasn't a big deal. _The last thing we need is her alerting security, or even Seth. He'll barge in her, convinced he has to go all machoprotective on Ronda. As if she needs it. _

Sasha hesitated, then picked up her duffel bag and shrugged. "I was leaving anyway," she said, and her head held high, she left the locker room.

"What the fuck does this have to do with cookies, Runt?" Ronda glared at her, snapping that black wristband thing she always wore. May was surprised she didn't wear one of her own, signature wristbands. She had at one point, something must have changed.

"Nothing," May said, "it's just a childhood thing. But it got her out of here. And let me guess, this has something to do with what you overheard Roman asking me today?"

"Yeah," Ronda glowered at her. "Roman told me that you know about… that night."

May bit her lip. If she were a vengeful person, she would let Ronda think that Roman had confessed to her, at least until Ronda indicated that she knew better. But, Headmom wasn't going to hear any of that. "Roman didn't tell me," she said. "I, well, I sort of _guessed._"

"You _guessed?_" Ronda's arms were crossed over her chest.

May could see her skepticism, it was a little hard to imagine how someone could just happen to guess that two people had sex, unless there was some hinting being done by one of the people involved. "Ronda, it was a while ago. Roman and I had to do a Make A Wish thing together. He was being a dick to me, which I know is nothing unusual, but we were in a limo together and I couldn't exactly walk away." She paused, thinking, trying to draw up enough from her memory to give a reader's digest version. "Roman was trying to imply that I couldn't love my sisters as much as he loved his daughter. I started needling him about how close he was to you, because you two were always saying you were like brother and sister. I said you were both a little 'too close' and suddenly he looked like he'd gone to the anti-tanning studio with Sheamus and Paige. And, well, I put it together."

"Fuck," Ronda said, shaking her head in anger. "I don't fucking _believe_ him." Her fingers went to the black band again, and she snapped it against her inner wrist.

"Ronda, don't get mad at Roman," May said out loud, while in her head, she was saying, _Holy shit, am I really defending Roman Reigns? Me? Headmom, do you hear that? I'm defending Roman Reigns! I think that's one of the biblical signs of Armageddon! _"It was just a series of remarks that lead to the wrong conclusions. I honestly was just trying to needle him for being so close to you, while implying I couldn't be close to my sisters. And, I really can't blame him for thinking I knew something. I said he was a little too close to you."

Ronda shook her head and began pacing the room. "Damn it, I should have known he wouldn't be able to keep his mouth shut." As she paced, she twanged at the wristband, constantly snapping it onto her skin.

"He did," May protested, "I guessed and I wouldn't even let him deny it."

"This is not going to make Seth happy," Ronda said, still pacing, still snapping.

"_If_ he finds out," May reminded her. "And why would he find out?"

"Because the only way to keep a secret between three people is if two of them are dead and the other is in a coma," Ronda snapped.

_Good point in most case, but this isn't most cases. _"Ronda, calm down. I am not going to tell anyone, I promise."

Ronda paused from her pacing and snapping and looked at May, "How do _I_ know that?"

"Technically, you don't," May said, "You'll have to trust me. I told Roman that day that I wasn't going to say anything because it would hurt his wife and his child and you and Seth." _I also mentioned that if the only person it would hurt was Roman, I'd put it on every billboard in the USA, but I don't think I'll bring that up. _

"Sure," Ronda snorted. "Because you _so_ want me and Seth to live happily ever after."

"Actually, I do," May said. Ignoring Ronda's obviously skeptical looks, she continued. "Why wouldn't I? I'm happy with Dolph. We're doing really well!" _Better than you know, Ronda, _May thought. _A whole lot better than most of the world knows. _ "And, if anyone knows how devoted Seth is to you, it's _me_. I was Ms. Interim, remember? I was the one that kept him… _company_ until you came back."

"And you've never gotten over that," Ronda said. She pulled the band very far back now, and let it snap on her skin. She hardly reacted, but May found herself flinching.

"Uh, yeah, I have," May disagreed. "Look, Ronda, I'm glad you love Seth. The two of you are living proof there really is someone for everyone. Yeah, Seth and I dated for two years, but after about six months, it was more of a habit than a relationship. We were never going to make it work. He likes _elf foo_d, for fuck's sake!"

"Elf food?"

May sighed, something she felt she was doing way too much of. "You're married to the guy, surely he's taken you to one of his favorite out of the way bistros where they serve you two green beans, artfully arranged in a criss-cross, and a bite of some type of meat that came from a grass fed, perfectly cared for, artfully bored to death animal. Tiny portions, at huge prices. _That's_ elf food."

May half expected Ronda to defend Seth's love of tiny, expensive bistros. She had thought that it would be a requirement for any wife of Seth Rollins. To her surprise, Ronda gave a snort as if stifling a laugh, then said, "Elf food." It wasn't a question, it was a statement, and it was obvious, Ronda found the humor in it. "They put that food on tiny plates and they'll tell you that as long as you see a full plate, you'll believe you're getting a lot of food."

Now May laughed. "It never worked on me. I grew up in a house where Mom brought food out to the table on Thanksgiving platters." She paused, shaking her head. "More than once, after Seth and I ate at one of those places, if Seth had to go somewhere without me, I'd cart myself to the nearest Denny's for a Grand Slam. I may be the _size_ of an elf, but I I like to feel full when I'm done eating."

The corners of Ronda's mouth twitched. "I ordered a cheeseburger and fries from room service, once."

This amused May. "You did? Did Seth get all bent out of shape?"

"At first," Ronda admitted, "Then he ate half my fries."

Now May laughed out loud. "That sounds about right. If my mom had sent a package that day, he'd eat the Snickerdoodles she sent along."

"Those Snickerdoodles are to _die_ for."

May knew Ronda had blurted that out without intending, but she smiled. "I'll have my mother send some for you, too. Unless there is another flavor of cookie you prefer. My mother makes about twelve different types."

"Your mother would make cookies for_ me?"_ Ronda looked skeptical, which seemed to be the flavor of the day.

"Sure," May said with a shrug. "She'd probably send you a bag of a dozen or so, just to make Seth wonder." She looked up at Ronda. "To be honest? When Seth and I broke up, my mother confessed that she didn't think he and I were ever suited for each other. She was actually relieved he took the plunge and cut it off. And, since you are the reason for the plunge, she's, in a roundabout way, grateful to you."

"Has anyone ever told you that your family is weird?" Ronda said, then her eyes widened, as she realized that what she said could easily be taken wrong. "I mean, in a good, Walton's or 7th Heaven kinda way. There are so many of you, yet you all are so close. I don't know how you do it. I know if I'd had that many siblings, I would have ended up murdering a few of them."

"Believe me, the thought crossed my mind more than a few times," May said. "But Ronda, seriously, I am not going to tell anyone. Certainly not Seth. I know he and I dated, but that is _so_ over. I want the two of you to be happy. And, as far as I'm concerned, _you_ didn't do anything wrong."

"A lot of folks would disagree with that," Ronda said. She sat down on the bench, a distance from May, and put her elbows on her knees, her chin in her hand looking morose.

"Well, there is the whole bit that you had sex with a married man," May admitted. "And I don't know the full story, but I can make some educated guesses."

"Oh?"

May nodded, "I see it going down like this, you were miserable because Seth cheated on you. Yes, it was with me, yes, at that point your relationship was bad, but that's not the point. The two of you hadn't officially broken up and Seth lied to me and said it was over. From where _I _stand, he cheated on you. I mean, for fuck's sake, he didn't even go into the mens room and text break up with you, which is a horrible way to break up with someone, but at least it's better than expecting you to get the message by osmosis."

"He was probably in too much of a hurry to get to your goodie basket," Ronda muttered, her hands going back to the band and snapping it against her wrist.

May laughed. "He'd have been better off waiting for one of my mom's packages from home. He was very unimpressed with my 'goodie basket.'" _ At least until he showed me what he liked._ She realized they were getting off topic again, and tried to bring it around. "What I'm betting happened, was that you were heartbroken, understandably. Not only had Seth decided your relationship was over without consulting you, he decided it was over enough to go sleeping with someone else. You weren't the most popular person in the locker room back then, you were still feeling your way around things. So, you probably called Roman, because the two of you were close. And, well, I won't get into detail because you know what happened and I don't, but what I'm betting is that you felt a little insecure and very unhappy, and one thing lead to another. Maybe Roman felt bad, I don't know. But, somehow the two of you ended up in bed together. I don't blame _you_, Ronda. I think Roman is an ass, but you were hurt and angry and… well, emotionally vulnerable. Seth's at fault for being such a shit. Roman is at fault for thinking that his Samoan love weasel is the cure-all for unhappy women. Hell, I'll even say _I'm_ at fault for being willing to leap and then look. But, if there is a one to ten scale for fault, I'd rate you and me at a three. We screwed up, but Roman's a nine and Seth is a ten. If Seth hadn't been a shit, then this wouldn't have happened."

"Seth won't see it that way," Ronda said, mournfully.

"So _what?"_ May said, before she could stop herself. "You're absolutely right. Seth, being a bit of a macho lunkhead, won't see it that way. Which is exactly why _I_ won't tell him. Because he won't get it. He'll twist it around in his own self-centered way and make it all about him. His brother and future wife betrayed him. That's bullshit." She looked over at the woman, who was still looking glum, but not quite as badly as she had been. "And, to be quite frank, it's none of my business."

"Maybe I should just tell him," Ronda said, sighing. She began twisting the band again, but didn't snap it. "Better he hears it from me."

"Ronda," May said, shaking her head. "Unless you're worried about Roman going to him, there's no point. What is it going to help? Again, I'm not going to tell him. I see you more as a victim then a guilty party. And if you see yourself as guilty, I'm going to suspect you just want to tell him to alleviate your guilt."

"He thinks I never cheated on him," Ronda said.

"You _didn't,_" May said firmly. "You two had broken up. _Roman_ cheated, but you and Seth were _not _in a relationship. The biggest victim in this whole mess is Roman's wife and kid. If you tell Seth you know, you risk that this could blow up and they could get involved in this. If you want to feel guilty, feel guilty. Look at Seth's trust as your penance."

"Huh?" Ronda's brows furrowed and her fingers paused on the band.

"If you want to beat up on yourself, tell yourself that if Seth knows, it will upset him. Is that fair to him? Is it fair for you to confess, just to ease your soul, knowing that he will feel hurt and betrayed? No. So, keep it to yourself. Do you plan on cheating on him again?"

"No!"

To give her credit, Ronda both looked and sounded horrified. "Okay then, what is the point of telling him? You want to make him miserable? You want to make him feel bad in order that you feel better? It doesn't work, it will never work." May found herself sighing again, wishing she could make Ronda understand that she, May, was never going to say anything. "I don't know how to make you understand, Ronda, but I won't say a word, because I'd rather minimize the damage."

Ronda's brows furrowed and she studied May, no doubt trying to see into her mind with her bitch ray (_shut up, Headmom) _vision. May was tired. She wanted to take a shower, change into her street clothes and go back to the hotel and see how Dolph was doing. Before she could think if this was wise, or stop herself, she drew in a deep breath and blurted out, "Dolph and I got married!"

Ronda's expression changed from bitch vision to shock. "What the hell are you talking about?"

"Dolph and I got married!" May said again, marveling at how good it felt to tell this secret that she'd and Dolph had been keeping close to their chest. "Money in the Bank was in Vegas and Dolph and I got married!" She paused, then added, "By an Elvis impersonator, no less."

"_Why_ are you telling me this?" Ronda asked, looking bewildered. "And, uh, congratulations?"

"Thank you," May said. "And I'm telling you because now you have something to hold over me. Dolph and I got married and the only people who know are Vince, Stephanie, Hunter, my Mom and Dad, and Dolph's parents. His brother and my brothers and sisters don't even know yet."

"Why?" Ronda looked honestly perplexed, which May understood, because in truth, it really wasn't anyone's business. Except for the fact that she and Dolph were _the_ couple of WWE.

"We had to tell Vince, Stephanie and Hunter," May explained. "And… well, they got this half baked idea and stupidly, we agreed."

"What half baked idea would that be?" Ronda asked, looking puzzled. May knew she probably was thinking that she and Seth got married quickly and nobody at the WWE had any objections.

"You know that Dolph and I are kinda considered _the_ couple, right? I mean, until this thing with you and I, he's always escorted me to my matches, and I still escort him to his. We're huge on the Mixed Match challenges, all of that. Vince feels the WWE has a justified interest in our status as a couple. Which will teach _me_ to ask Dolph to dance in a parking lot at IHOP."

"Well, yeah, that _was_ stupid," Ronda agreed.

_I wonder if she saw the video?_ May thought, then realized that was probably a stupid question. That video would probably haunt her and Dolph until the day they died. "It was a spur of the moment thing," May admitted. "And, it was fun while it happened. But, yeah, we're _the_ couple and Stephanie and company didn't think it was right for us to just run off and get married without notifying people. I think though, by people, they meant _them."_

"You and Dolph are adults," Ronda said. "It's really not their business."

"Tell _them_ that," May said, rolling her eyes. "So, they came up with this bullshit. Dolph will propose to me at one of the Pay Per Views. I'm not sure which one, but there will be a Mixed Match challenge, which we'll win, and Dolph will propose. I will accept and we will have some fucked up, fake wedding at Wrestlemania."

Ronda's eyes widened in horror for a moment, then she gave May a look that could be seen as sympathetic. "Oh god, that sounds _awful." _

"Yeah," May said, sighing.

"How did they get you to do it?" Ronda asked. "I mean, I would have told them to take a flying fuck in a rolling donut if they'd asked me and Seth to do something like that."

"They promised us two weeks off for a honeymoon," May said.

"Oh." Ronda nodded. Getting two weeks off, together, without being injured was almost impossible. That was a pretty juicy prize to dangle. "Right after Wrestlemania?"

May laughed, "They aren't _that_ generous. We get to take two weeks off, the week after Backlash. We're both going to get injured, or something. Or, one of us will get injured and the other one will have to take time off to nurse the other back to health, because that's how devoted we are." To May's surprise, Ronda burst out laughing. "What's so funny, Rousey Rollins?"

Ronda's eyes narrowed at May's nickname, but she laughed again. "I just got a vision of you, dressed like Snow White in the Disney cartoon, little birds fluttering around you and chirping as you tended to Dolph, lying on some old fashioned bed." She laughed again, this time louder and there was a distinctive snort at the end. "Singing some earworm about how you were going to fix his injuries with sunshine and love. Oh god, it's _so_ you."

May's eyes narrowed now, and she attempted to stare daggers at Ronda, then gave up, realizing that had the roles been reversed and she'd been picturing Ronda as a Disney Princess, she would have been laughing too. "Okay, that's fair."

Ronda laughed for a minute or so more, then pulled herself together. "Okay, Runt, why are you telling me this? I get that it's a secret, but is it _that_ big of a deal?"

May nodded. "We had to beg Vince and company to let us tell our _folks_. If it gets out that we're already married? We'll lose that two weeks. We'll also be on the top of the shit list. Don't ask me why, but Stephanie and Vince are excited about this mock wedding at Wrestlemania. I mean, like excited to the point where they're having custom made wedding rings for us that look like finger sized wrestling championships."

Ronda's eyes widened. "You're kidding."

"Nope," May shook her head. "We saw the sketches. They do look wonderful and I'd love having it, if they weren't going to be our _weddin_g bands."

"Do you really have to wear them all the time?" Ronda asked.

"At first we sure do," May said. "Because fans will want to see them. We're hoping though, that after the excitement dies down, we can go back to the rings we bought for our real wedding." She paused and shook her head. "So, if you decided to let this leak on social media, you could get Dolph and I in serious shit."

"If I tweet about it, I'll be right up at the top of the list next to you and Dolph."

"Ronda, you know enough folks that you could get someone else to announce it on their Twitter feed. They could claim they were in Vegas and saw us." An idea occurred to May and she grabbed her phone. "Give me an email address or your phone number.!"

Ronda wasn't sure she wanted to give May her phone number, but she did have email addresses that she considered to be throw away ones, given out to avoid Spam or weird fans getting her real accounts and she gave her one of those. May began punching buttons. When she finished she smiled. "Check your phone."

Ronda checked the email. May had sent her a picture of her and Dolph. May was wearing a lacy white dress, not a formal wedding dress, but it had a wedding feel. Dolph was wearing a suit, and the two of them were standing in front of a fat Elvis, wearing a suit so studded with glitter that it was amazing it hadn't ruined the shot with the twinkling. Jim Morrison was standing next to Dolph and Janis Joplin next to May. "What fresh hell is this?" Ronda asked.

"The _Rock and Roll Chapel of Love_," May explained. "And yes, it's a big ball of cheese, but that was the point of it. Either way, with that picture, you hold something big over us. You could get Dolph and me in serious trouble. That's _got_ to tell you that you can trust me with your secret, because I'm trusting you with mine."

Ronda bit her lip and appeared to be thinking. "This is only going to be blackmail worthy until Wrestlemania."

"Yes and no," May disagreed. "Even after we go through all that bullshit at Wrestlemania, the Powers that Be aren't going to want it to get out that we were married before we got married. Trust me, Ronda, you know the McMahon's and Hunter better than anyone. Will they ever be all right with that getting out? I mean, they have a storyline planned that involves Vince getting one of those twenty dollar, 'congratulations, you're a minister of the church of the Internet. You may now marry people!'"

Ronda bit her lip again, thinking more. Then she nodded. "You're right. Fair exchange."

"Good," May said. "I'm also going to ask you to promise not to even tell Seth. I never told Dolph about you and Roman, so it's fair."

Ronda slowly nodded, then did something that shocked May, she held her hand out. May stared at it, then realized why Ronda had done it. She grasped it and shook it. "Deal?"

Ronda nodded again. "Deal."


	6. Chapter 6

**Fakeclaimer: **So, I heard that the WWE once considered making a championship belt that looked like a giant watch. Fortunately, it never happened because they realized it would be a big waist of time.

* * *

.

**Chapter Six**

{o}-{o}-{o}

.

_I could get used to this, _May thought as she headed to the back, looking forward to a shower and then seeing how Dolph was doing. Smackdown had just ended with her and Ronda's contract signing, and as could have been predicted by anyone who had even watched a week of wrestling, it did not go well. Words had been exchanged, tables flipped, blows struck, and May had gotten the upper hand. Since this was the last Smackdown before the PPV, May had a feeling she would be losing this match, even though they had both been told they would not be finding out who was to win and who was to lose until the 11th hour. May had signed contracts before, that wasn't what she could get used to, but she had rarely been in the last show of the night, even on Smackdown. Since this conflict with Ronda, almost every show they did, they were Main Event. The only one that hadn't had been the Smackdown when Ronda attacked her on the announcer table, and that was probably to throw the crowd off. Dolph and Miz having a main event match, with little to no reason behind it would make no sense. So, it had been the match in the middle of the show, which seemed to be the second most favorable match to be in.

Dolph hadn't had a match tonight, which May was grateful for, even if Dolph was a little upset about it. May still hadn't gotten any of her mother's homemade cough syrup, and Dolph's cold was still clinging. He'd doused himself down with OTC stuff, which had masked most of the symptoms, but he still had a glassy eyed, slightly feverish look. If May had her way, he would have been allowed to stay at the hotel and get some sleep, but this was the WWE after all. And the best they would do is not schedule a match for him, and let him hang out in the back.

After getting the upper hand, May had been the first one to leave, as Ronda lay on the ground, holding her championship like it was the only thing keeping her alive and staring daggers at the ramp where May had walked, as if now the very ramp itself was contaminated. Typical wrestling stuff that meant that May got to the locker room first.

There was a note taped to her locker with her name on it. May pulled it off and read it:

_Hey babe,  
I'm in medical. I'm fine, but they have a cot I can lay on, and decongestants. So, when you're done, meet me there._

_Love you_

May smiled. Dolph must have flagged down one of the women and asked them to tape the note to her locker. That was one of the many things she loved about Dolph, he was considerate. It wasn't just a matter of writing the note, he had to find someone who knew what locker May was using. When she was dating Seth, more than once, if Seth got off after her, she would find a text on her phone telling her he'd gone out with Roman and Dean to have some drinks and unwind and he'd meet her in the hotel later. An automatic assumption she wouldn't be joining them, which she didn't fault him for, she never tried to interfere on his time with his "brothers."

_I wonder if he does the same thing with Ronda?_ she thought, then realized that no, he wouldn't have to, Ronda was always welcome to hang with the boys, and always did. She hung with them more than Renee did, even though Renee was married to Dean. Renee didn't mind going along with the group, but she was also just as likely to go with May and maybe one or two of the other girls in the locker room, and have nachos and wine. _WCW,_ May thought. _Wine, Cheese, and Whine. _ Good wine, bad food, with lots and lots of melted cheese, and bitching about anything and everything. It was a lot more fun than therapy, and probably served the same purpose. Dolph had gone with them a few times. Dean had even joined them twice, which was nice, but it changed the whole dynamics of the evening. They all had a wonderful time, but nobody did much complaining, feeling oddly censored by having members of the opposite sex with them.

_It makes sense, _May thought. _I know Dolph knows more about me than anyone, and he'd listen to me any time I needed to talk, but I'm not ready to discuss the woes of trying to find the perfect tampon to use while wrestling. _May had grown up with enough sisters that she always had someone around to discuss the problems of being female. Or, to gripe about boys and men without having to say, 'Present company excluded' all the time.

Brows furrowing, she realized that Ronda _always_ went out with Seth, Dean, and Roman. Once in awhile, she did something with Charlotte or maybe one of the other girls, but those occasions were so rare that they were almost the exceptions that proved the rule. May always thought it was because she considered the girls in the locker room to be poor company compared to "her" boys, but now she wondered. Nobody ever asked Ronda to go along, it was always assumed she would say "no."

_And nobody wants to invite themselves out for a night on the town._

.

{o}-{o}-{o}

.

"Here," Ronda said, pushing a drink in front of Dean. "It's called Penicillin."

Dean studied the drink with heavy lidded eyes and a bit of suspicion. "Is this going to fuck me up?"

Ronda shrugged. She and "the boys" the three former members of Shield were at the hotel nightclub, which was fairly low key and good for unwinding. As was their usual custom, they took turns buying rounds, Seth and Ronda counting themselves each as one, just to make it fair. Not that money was an issue for any of them, it was the principle of the matter. Ronda had just bought the last round, and she had told Dean she would pick for him. Dean had been doing a lot of sniffling that day and Seth had told her he was probably coming down with the same cold Dolph had. "It's made with two types of Scotch, lemon juice, and honey ginger syrup. It's supposed to help with cold symptoms."

Dean stared at the drink then shrugged. "Well, it can't hurt, and it might help." He took a sip. "This isn't bad at all."

"Sorry about the cold, Dude," Seth said sympathetically. When you had a normal life, colds were bad enough, in the WWE they were awful. And it seemed that if one person caught a cold, _everyone_ caught a cold.

"T'anks," Dean said, sniffing. "Let's hope this drink works!" He tossed it back, maybe not the soundest advice, but it was too late to stop him.

"The worst it will do is get you plastered and at least you'll sleep like a dream," Ronda remarked with a grin, then asked, "Is Renee going to be joining us?"

Dean shook his head. "She and May were going to go and do their chick bonding thing," he said, looking slightly bewildered as if he didn't understand their rituals at all. "But, Dolph is still in the middle of this cold, so they're turning in early."

"What? One of Runt's mother's miracle cures not do its job?" Roman said with a sneer.

Normally, Ronda would have chuckled at Roman's remark and possibly even flung off a stinging barb of her own. It wasn't that she still felt hostility towards May, well, not for the _mos_t part, but old habits were hard to break and honestly, when it came to that family of hers, it was almost too easy to let the sarcasm out to play. And, maybe that was part of the reason, that it was too much like shooting fish in a barrel, but before Ronda could stop herself, she looked over at Roman, eyes narrowed. "Big Dog, why don't you just shut the fuck up when it comes to May, okay?"

Roman gave her a look that was more like a puppy being smacked on the nose with a newspaper than a "Big Dog," an expression of hurt on his face. _Don't go overboard,_ Ronda reminded herself, snapping the band on her wrist. "Sorry," she said taking a deep breath.

"Since when do _you_ come to May's defense?" Roman asked, still looking that puppy dog cross between hurt and confused. "What has _she_ done for you?" Barely were the words out of his mouth, when his expression changed to one of alarm.

_He thinks this has something to do with that night,_ Ronda thought. "She's willing to put it all on the line for this Hell in a Cell match with me, and I appreciate that. Some of the girls in the locker room don't always do their best to sell my moves." _In all fairness, there are times when you could give their moves a little more sell, but you don't. _She snapped the band against her wrist.

"Aw," Dean said, and sniffled, "Are Ronda and May gonna become besties, now?"

Ronda shot him a look, but she knew he was teasing in that typical Dean fashion, and didn't mean anything bad by it. "Why do you ask, Dean? Afraid that your wife will feel left out in the cold and you'll never be able to have a boys only night?"

Dean laughed, not letting her words bother him at all. "You can't break _that_ bond. They're like sisters."

_Of course they are, _Ronda thought, snapping the band again. Only Seth knew why she snapped her wristband, Roman and Dean just chalked it down to a peculiar habit. "No, May and I will never be besties, I don't _do_ cutesie little friendships like 'besties' or 'bffs,' I'm a grown woman for fuck's sake. But, I'm just a little tired of the short jokes."

"Says the woman who first called her a 'fun-sized freak?'" Roman was trying to make light of the situation, but Ronda knew him well enough to know he was nervous.

"Roman, it's your turn to buy a round," Ronda said, even though only Dean's drink was gone. "The bar looks quiet, so I'll go with you to help you carry them."

When they got up to the bar, Roman ordered and Ronda waited. As the bartender started making the drinks, she looked at him. "Roman, I told you, things are cool with May."

"Yeah, I know, you told me May promised not to tell anyone." Roman frowned, worry lines creasing his forehead. "But can we trust her?"

There was no way Ronda was going to tell Roman about May and Dolph being secretly married. May wasn't her favorite person, but the woman had trusted her to keep the secret. "Look, if I hadn't overheard _you_ asking her about it, I never would have found out. She's kept that secret, and I trust her to keep on keeping it."

"I wish I could trust her," Roman muttered as he handed his credit card to the bartender. "There's just something about her, and I can't put my finger on it. I just don't trust her."

_That's because you have more to lose, _Ronda thought. _We fucked up, but that was a one off with me. You, on the other hand, have __done an awesome job of _not_ keeping it in your pants. I wasn't the first, and I know I'm not the last. _She realized Roman was studying her and looked up at him, "Something on your mind?"

"No," Roman said, handing her two drinks as he took two himself. "I'm just surprised that you're suddenly pro-May."

"What the fuck," Ronda said, holding her and Seth's drink, but not moving towards the table. "I'm not 'pro May.' I still find her gratingly annoying when she's playing surrogate Mommy to the entire WWE universe. I still think Seth lost his mind when he was dating her. But, we have to work together until _Hell in a Cell_ is over, and I'd rather it goes down as smooth as possible. I don't want Hunter finding a reason to ride my ass." Before Roman could respond, she turned and headed back to the table.

.

{o}-{o}-{o}

_Hell in a Cell_

_._

Barely had May and Dolph walked in the door of the Staples Center for _Hell in a Cell_, when an intern almost pounced on her, telling her to report to Hunter "yesterday."

"That is impossible," May said, to the girl with the tight perm that reminded her of a poodle. "Nobody has learned to bend time, so my reporting to Hunter yesterday is not going to happen."

The girl, who was young and no doubt just repeating what was told to her, pulled her head back in a jerking motion and for a moment, looked like someone had smacked her on the nose with a newspaper. "Uh, he and Ms. Rousey are in the office!"

"And where might that be located in this fine arena?" Dolph asked.

"He isn't asking for _you_, he's asking for _May!"_

May and Dolph exchanged looks and tried not to laugh. "He was asking for my sake," May said.

"The office is located just outside of catering. I don't have _time_ to talk, I have to find Seth Rollins." She turned and started running down the hall.

"Do you think we'll _ever_ get an intern who's chill?" Dolph asked as they continued down the hall.

May pretended to think. "There was one a couple years ago that was. Nancy, I think her name was. Remember? Renee and I took her out for wine and nachos when she was leaving."

"Yeah, I think I remember her," Dolph said. "The One out of Many."

.

{o}-{o}-{o}

.

True to the intern's word, the makeshift office was right outside of catering, which made it easy to find. They paused by the door so they could kiss and when they broke apart, Dolph murmured in her ear, "I almost wish we'd find out we weren't in this one."

"Fat chance," May said, smiling up at him. "We _both_ have matches in this one. Ronda would have my neck if I ditched."

"Vince would have _our _necks if we ditched," Dolph said, grinning back. "So, if I don't see you before the show, I'll see you tonight?"

May nodded. They were at the Staples Center, which meant everything was happening three hours early to match with Eastern Daylight Savings Time, which meant that the show would get over a lot earlier than normal. "Renee and I are going to grab some wine and nachos when we're done," May said. "But we shouldn't be out too late, considering the time changes."

"That's right, I forgot," Dolph said, nodding. "A little WCW?"

"You got it," She grinned. "Are you and some of the guys going out?"

Dolph nodded again, "Me, Zack, Miz and a couple other guys were going out. At least that's where it stands right now. It'll probably be a much larger crowd by the time we go." He shrugged. "But, I don't think we'll be out forever. We might be doing everything earlier, but most of us still function on EDST. I'll probably be back at the hotel by Midnight."

"That sounds about right." May wrapped her arms around him, giving him another kiss. "I'll see you then."

"See you later, Tiny Wrestler."

She watched him walk around the corner to catering, then knocked on the door.

.

{o}-{o}-{o}

.

Ronda wasn't surprised she and May would be the Main Event for _Hell in a Cell_, that was almost expected with her, especially considering it was an actual _Hell in a Cell _match. This wouldn't be her first HIAC match, but she hadn't done many. And, while Ronda couldn't be 100% sure, this might be May's first.

What was surprising was that Vince was going to wait until the last minute to let them know who was winning.

Ronda had been in more matches than she could remember where she wasn't told until the day of the event that she would be winning, and quite a few where she wasn't told until she was heading out to fight, but this was the first time she'd go out and not know until the _referee _let them know, and the referee wouldn't know until Vince told him _during_ the fight.

She knew about these matches, Roman had been in a few of them and had told her they could be nerve wracking. Ronda never understood quite how nerve wracking it could be until today. She hadn't had the championship that long in this round, was she going to give it up to May? Would May be moving to Raw?

Ronda had been around enough to know that no championship was a lifetime, not just know it, but know it and feel it. And she even understood, people got tired of one person holding the belt all the time. She had even found that she liked it better when she lost the belt, and not just for a couple weeks or for the cycle of one PPV to the next, but lost it enough to really have a good storyline in order to win it back. She also found that fans appreciated seeing a struggle too. Sure, her most ardent fans would get furious when she didn't have the belt, but they also got right behind her when there was a good struggled to get it back. It was one of the reasons she'd loved the storyline with Lacey Evans, that girl really could sell that having the championship was her divine purpose in life.

Could May Devany?

And, if she was going to Raw, would Dolph follow? Not that Dolph registered much on Ronda's radar, but in light of what May had told her, it seemed natural that if May went to Raw, then Dolph would have to, at least until Wrestlemania and their "wedding" was over with.

"Are you okay?"

Ronda looked up and over at May. They were in catering, sitting at a table to work out the match. "I'm fine," she said. "I'm just a little surprised they don't know who is going to win."

May shrugged, picking up a melon ball from the bowl of fruit salad she'd grabbed. "I don't know why Vince is playing this game to be honest, you're going to win."

Ronda looked over at her, raising one brow, and helped herself to a strawberry from the fruit bowl. "That's up in the air."

May shook her head. "I don't know why they're playing this game. You're going to win. I'm the Smackdown girl and Dolph is the Smackdown guy." She looked at the bowl, then the strawberry Ronda was biting into, and grinned. "Oh, and please, help yourself."

"Thanks," Ronda said, when she'd finished eating the first bite. "This might be the biggest strawberry I've ever seen," she remarked.

"Catering is trying to impress us by letting us know they use only local produce." May said with a shrug. "Big state, big sunshine, big fruit. But really, I'd be willing to bet my next paycheck that I'm going to lose."

"Then why would they not be willing to tell us?"

May took a strawberry of her own, which was almost the size of a small apple and bit into it. She chewed thoughtfully before answering, "They're pushing us."

Ronda's right brow raised again. "I think we're over by now."

May shook her head. "No, that isn't what I mean. I think they're trying to get us to give our best and a little bit more." She put the uneaten half of her strawberry on a napkin. "Think about it, if we don't know who is going to win, we're both going to give it our all, because we always seem to put our best foot forward when we win. We want to make it really look like we're inflicting damage, we want to make sure the audience realizes how much pain we're going through to get that championship. It's a dick move, but it's pretty smart."

Ronda thought about it, then shrugged, seeing her point. "So, what do we do to make it spectacular?"

"Fight for real," May calmly suggested.

Ronda started to laugh, then stared at her. "You're _serious_, aren't you?"

"Why not?" May said, shrugging. "We're both well versed in martial arts. You in Judo, me in whatever bastard form Grandpa taught me, but I think we know enough to put on a hell of a match. For _real."_

Ronda knew her staring was coming across more like gaping now, but she couldn't stop. "I'm waiting for the part where you laugh and go, 'Psyche!'"

"Not going to happen," May said.

Ronda studied the small woman, looking for any signs she was giving her crap, but saw none. May's expression wasn't negative, but it was focused, she _wanted_ to do this. Ronda thought about it. "We can't take each other out," she said.

"I know," May said. "But, I think we both know how to do this so neither of us is out on injury."

Ronda thought about it and realized it would likely be pretty good. She might be a wrestler now, but she hadn't let her Judo skills slide, she'd kept them sharp. And May obviously kept herself sharp too. May had not competed in formal competition, but Seth had told her about her sparing with her sister. It was a risk, but if they pulled it off, the crowd would be stunned. A lot of folks might _not_ realize what they were doing, but a lot _would. _

And "a lot" meant Hunter for sure. Vince too, she was pretty sure, but she had no doubt Hunter would know what they were doing. "We are going to be in big trouble," she said, expecting this would make May reconsider. Wasn't May the perpetual goodie two shoes? Sure, Ronda realized in these last few weeks, she wasn't quite the innocent saint that wouldn't say shit if she had a mouthful, but being a little sarcastic and blunt mouthed didn't mean she was willing to flagrantly ignore rules, did it?

"We'll be caught, and we'll be in serious trouble," Ronda said.

May nodded. "Yep. But the audience will love it, and you know what?"

"What?"

"Joke 'em if they can't take a fuck."


	7. Chapter 7

**Fakeclaimer: **I've been trying to teach myself Roman numerals and it's going really well. The only problem I have are remembering what 51, 6, and 500 are. I'll tell you, it makes me LIVID

* * *

.

**Chapter Seven**

{o}-{o}-{o}

_Hell in a Cell  
Main Event_

.

"The following is a _Hell In A Cell,_ match, for the _Raw, women's championship!_ Introducing the challenger, from New York, New York, It's _May Devany!_" JoJo announced, her voice sailing over the crowd, who cheered loudly. If May noticed, she gave no indication, she was too busy staring at her opponent, as any good wrestler would.

"Her opponent, from Venice California, she is the Raw Women's Champion, and the _baddest_ woman on the planet, _Rowdy Ronda Rousey!"_

The cheers were louder for Ronda, and she couldn't help but get a bit of satisfaction. It wasn't that they were hugely louder, a much bigger group of Ronda fans drowning out the May fans, it seems that some people were more than willing to cheer for both, but there _was_ an audible difference. She knew May heard it too, and couldn't help but give her opponent a smirk.

May's brows raised, as if to say, "Really? That _matters?"_

_It does when you're the one getting more, _Ronda thought, as the two of them began circling each other, sizing each other up. She found her hand going to her wrist, before she remembered that she wasn't wearing her black wristband. _I need to be careful, especially in this match._

.

{o}-{o}-{o}

.

The beginning of the match was such a classic HIAC match that it could have been shown to wrestling hopefuls as the textbook match. Both women got their chances to throw the other into the walls of the cage, to attempt to pin, and several other things that looked nasty and actually did hurt badly, even though both women were careful to cause minimal damage to themselves and each other.

Ronda was the first to draw blood, and it was truly an accident. She had tossed May and instead of getting between the first and second rope to hang there, she miscalculated and the second rope snapped up, smacking her in the nose. Her nose seemed to realize that if you had to botch, do your best to make it look like part of the show and responded by not a trickle, but a downpour of blood. May felt an explosion of pain behind her eyes that made it seem like the blood from her nose had gone up instead of down, and painted her vision bright red.

"Now, that's not fair!" Renee exclaimed.

"Aww, poor May got a boo-boo?" Cory mocked, then his voice became its usual straddle between angry and irritated. "It's not Ronda's fault that May is clumsy!"

"Ronda needs to be more careful," Renee said, which was typical. Ronda tried to be careful when she wrestled, especially the last few years, but accidents did happen and the WWE enjoyed billing her as stronger than she realized. So, every time her opponent bled, Renee or whoever was the face color would point out that Ronda needed to be more careful. In her rational moments, May even found the comments to be a little nasty, like if Ronda was fighting nobody could possibly have an accident, that it had to be Ronda being too rough.

The referee came over to make sure May could still wrestle, which she certainly could. Doing his best to cover the view, he let May pinch her nose for a few moments to stop the deluge, and then stuff some cotton up to hopefully keep the trickle from rolling down her face.

Ronda paced nearby and kept making threatening gestures as if she was going to attack May, bloody nose or not. The commentators argued back and forth about the state of May's nose. May had to give it to Ronda, she was doing an excellent job of keeping the excitement high so the crowd hardly realized May was doing some fast first aid on herself.

Ronda was edging her way closer and closer, as the referee warned May to be more careful, that it wouldn't do good for the match to end early. When May knew Ronda was close behind her, she snapped up as if shot with a cattle prod, and went after Ronda, knocking her to the ground and throwing punches that barely missed the woman.

When the referee gave the signal that the match was at the halfway point, things changed. The cameras were doing a close up on May, something they had been doing a lot of to show that her nose was swelling and the bits of cotton that dangled from her nose were stained red. The WWE might like to pretend they didn't want blood, but when it happened, they sure were happy to show the audience over and over again. May was staring at Ronda, and she gave the slightest nod, so slight that it was easy to overlook.

Unless you were Ronda and had been waiting for it.

The match changed at that moment, and at first nobody realized it but May and Ronda. It went from being wrestling with various martial arts moves, modified for wrestling, into a true martial arts match.

.

{o}-{o}-{o}

.

The little bit of discussing they had been able to do, it was determined that Ronda would start off defensive and May would be the aggressor. After that hip blow earlier, Ronda had been a little wary that May might just decide to take her out, and when May gave the signal, she'd almost been tempted to ignore it. But, Ronda also knew she couldn't do that. She had never backed down from any challenge give to her, and she wasn't going to start now. Besides, she wasn't weak, she knew how to ignore pain and keep going.

A spinning, roundhouse kick to her hip again, told Ronda that yes, this was real, but May was being careful as she could be, exaggerating her moves and trying to slow them down, to give Ronda plenty of time to react and defend. Ronda had to be honest, May was not quite in her league when it came to martial arts, but she was very, _very_, close. _Maybe, when this is over, the two of us can spar sometimes. _There were other women in the back with an MMA background, and Ronda had sparred with a couple of them, but they weren't quite up to May's snuff.

Since May was _that_ good, Ronda figured the least she could do was to be at _least_ as good and likely better. When they switched off so May was defensive, Ronda did her best to do what May had done, make it real, but slow it down enough so the smaller woman could react.

It took a few minutes for Vince and the back crew to realize something had changed in the fight, and another minute or two for them to alert the referee. The audience had picked up on it by then though. There were probably at least a thousand folks in the stands that knew what a martial arts competition fight looked like, who figured it out first, and then the rest of the audience seemed to absorb it, this was not a normal match. This was a lot closer to real. The look on May's face when Ronda landed a good kick to her thigh wasn't an exaggerated expression of pain, it was real, May was _hurting_.

The referee was looking dazed, but someone must have shouted into his earpiece, because he came over and kept trying to get close to the girls, to tell them both to cut it out or he'd have the bell rung and have them both disqualified, to hell with it.

Ronda and May ignored him, speeding up so they just didn't have the energy to focus on anything but each other, taking turns being aggressor and defender. Ronda felt the kicks, the blows, and knew she would have to _bathe_ in ice if she even stood a chance of getting rid of them, but she didn't care. This wasn't just a way to screw with the back and give the fans something extra, this was _exhilarating_.

She could have finished out the whole match this way, and she knew May could too. To hell with the rules of wrestling, to hell with a predetermined winner, just fight to see who would win this. And she knew May was feeling the same way. She wasn't grinning, that would look bad, but Ronda could see a gleam in her eyes that wasn't there in their earlier entanglements. This wasn't just about really fighting each other, it was about testing their own limits, realizing they could dish it out _an_d take it and that nursing the bruises would even feel good in some ways, because they had pushed themselves and stood to tell the tale.

The back though, had other ideas and the referee finally steeled himself and got close enough to get in the middle of them, barely avoiding a kick May was aiming at Ronda. May was able to pull it back at the last second, and the only victim was her dignity, as she collapsed in a clumsy heap on the floor.

The referee took May's fall as a way to get into Ronda's face. "What the fuck are you doing?"

Ronda pretended to be trying to get around him to get back to May, but shouted back, "We're having a match!"

"This is not what you're supposed to be doing!" The referee cried, looking angry. Although the angry look was normal. Referees were supposed to look angry when they got between two fighters. "I am getting screamed at to stop this right now."

"The match? They want to stop the match?"

"No! They want the match to get back on track!" The referee made several gestures, looking as if he was forcing Ronda back into the corner. "And, time is getting short, the two of you have less than five minutes to wrap it up, so the two of you get your act together and do this right!"

Ronda looked over his shoulders, seeing May had rolled out of the ring and was rummaging under it. She looked back at the referee. "No problem, we're back on track."

"You'd better be! You're winning this thing!"

_Runt was right, _Ronda realized, although she wasn't that surprised.

The referee stepped away, and as he did, May had managed to appear to be sneaking around behind her, folded metal chair in the ready. Ronda spun around and grabbed it from her. May looked properly horrified and ran to another corner. Instead of trying to stop Ronda, the referee went over to May to "yell" at her to the audience, but to let her know she was to lose the match. Then he spun around as Ronda advanced, as if to yell at Ronda about the chair. Ronda dodged out of the way, came around May, and slammed her in the back with the chair.

May fell flat on her stomach, almost as good as Roman had when Seth had gotten him with a chair, the first time Shield had broken up. It was just such a shame May didn't have the weight Roman did, because she didn't bounce like Roman had. If she'd been able to do that, it would have been a glorious slo-mo moment that would have been shown for years. She did come off the mat slightly, but that wasn't enough. She did, however, get a look of pain on her face that Ronda would see later. Her eyes actually crossed, and her mouth opened in an expression that looked both exaggerated and amazingly real, then seemed to collapse on the floor, as if every bone in her body was broken.

Ronda put her in an armbar, a look of cold determination on her face. May milked it, pretending to struggle, pretending to fight as hard as she could against the pain, but then gave one yelp as Ronda pretended to shift her grip slightly, as if now she was risking breaking May's arm into a million pieces. Then and _only_ then, did May, her eyes filled with extremely realistic looking tears, begin slapping the mat as hard as she could, kicking her legs too, as if she was in so much unbearable agony that she was tossing a fit.

The bell rang and JoJo joyously announced, "Your winner, and _still_ the Raw Women's Champion, _Rowdy Ronda Rousey!" _

Ronda leaped off of May, who lay on the floor in a heap. The referee had gone to the door and gotten the belt for her. When he brought it back, Ronda snatched it as if it were her beloved, long lost, puppy and hugged it to herself, then raised it high in the air.

The crowd cheered loudly enough that Ronda was sure everyone in Los Angeles heard it.

.

{o}-{o}-{o}

.

"All I want to know is what in the _hell_ were you ladies _doing_ out there?"

May looked at Hunter, thinking she might never have seen him so angry. His voice was modulated, but there was a red glow to his face that she knew was anger. _Holy crap, I really stepped in it, now. _

"We decided to shake it up a bit," Ronda said and shrugged as if it was no big deal. "We knew we could handle it."

"You _knew_ you could handle it?" Hunter said, his voice sounding incredulous. "And what made _you_ decide you could handle it?"

May knew she should say something, speak up, but the first thing that came to her was, "Because we've got mad skills," and she knew that was about as likely to go over as a balloon filled with ball bearings was to float to the sky.

As it turned out, she didn't need to say anything, because Hunter kept right on talking. "Ronda, we've had this discussion before, you are _no_t allowed to change matches to suit your whims. And May," he turned to her. "I'm surprised you went along with it. I know you and Ronda have -"

"Wait a moment," May couldn't let that one pass. "Why do you automatically assume this was _Ronda's_ idea?"

"Because you've never done anything like this before," Hunter said. "Ronda, on the other hand-"

"Didn't want to do this," May interrupted. "It was my idea, Hunter. Completely _mine."_ her hands were at her sides, but she crossed her toes in her shoes. "I forced her to do it. I suggested it, and she said no, but then when we got in the ring, I just went after her. She _had_ to play along just to be safe, if anyone is to blame here, it's me."

She could feel Ronda staring at her, and see Hunter fixing her with a look. She refused to look at Ronda. _It was my idea! I'm not lying about that. Just that Ronda was willing._

"Hunter, _she's _lying," Ronda said. "Yes, it was her idea, but_ I _agreed with it."

_No,_ May thought. _Let me take the blame for this. It _was_ my idea! _She shook her head. "Ronda, you know-"

"That I was a willing accomplice," Ronda finished. "Hunter, we just wanted to do something different."

"It's not your jobs to 'do something different,'" Hunter said, mimicking Ronda in an exaggerated tone. "It's your job to do what we _tell_ you! Vince is furious!"

"Vince probably gets furious when his toast gets cold," May blurted out before she could stop herself.

Hunter pinned his gaze on her. "What did you say?"

"I said Vince gets upset too easily," May said.

"Too _easily?"_ Hunter's voice rose in both volume and octave. "_He_ runs this company, and _he_ calls the shot. You are the talent, it's not _your_ job to override what he says, it's _your_ job to do what you're told."

"I don't remember being told we couldn't have a genuine match," May said, and instantly wished she could take the words back, as she saw Hunter's face flush even redder.

It was a credit that he didn't scream, but merely spoke as if he were biting off every word from a leather strap. "_You,_ May, are digging yourself a deep hole you may never crawl out of."

"Yes, sir," May said, hanging her head. It had seemed like such a good idea when she suggested it, but maybe she'd been stupid. She had managed to keep her head down and be a good girl for the most part since she started in NXT, what had possessed her to decide to violate the rules on this match? And _why_ did she feel she had to drag Ronda into this with her?

"Since you're claiming responsibility for this whole fiasco," Hunter began.

"Wait a moment!" Ronda interrupted.

Hunter still scowled, but now he fixed that scowl on Ronda. "If I were you, Ronda, I would just keep my mouth shut, and you might come out of this relatively unscathed. You and Vince may not be at odds anymore, but your relationship is tentative at best."

"Hunter, that's bullshit, and you know it," Ronda snapped. "Vince may not think I'm up there with Charlotte Flair in being a company girl, but he _knows_ I bring in the crowds. Every time I leave, the company suffers and when I come back, there is a resurgence of popularity. He can claim it isn't me, but I'm not that stupid, I can figure it out."

"Ronda," May said, trying to warn her. May knew she was walking on thin ice, but she also knew she had never been in this type of trouble before, and Ronda had. Her stupid idea, as great as it had been when they were fighting, had gotten Ronda into more hot water than she deserved to be in. May owed it to her to try to minimize the damage. "This was _my_ idea!"

"Yeah, but _I_ didn't have to agree," Ronda said.

"_I_ was pretty insistent!"

"So?" Ronda shrugged. "You're not my boss, _I_ could have refused, and you would have gone right along with me. I agreed because I thought the idea sounded good too." She looked over at Hunter. "I'm just as much to blame as May is, Hunter. If she's going down, I deserve to be standing on that ship right next to her."

"No, you don't!" May protested.

The two of them started to argue back and forth, both of them equally as passionate about what they believed. So passionate, that it was almost three minutes before they realized that Hunter had stopped talking completely and was just looking at the two of them, and his expression was no longer flushed and angry. He wasn't smiling, but there was a glint in his eyes that appeared to be one of amusement. Both Ronda and May turned their gaze to him. "Well, of all the things I never thought I'd see, this tops the list," he said.

"What?" May asked.

"Ronda Rousey and May Devany willing to take all the blame to protect each other," Hunter said, and now May swore she saw a faint twitch to the corner of his mouth, as if he were dying to smile at them both. "Before this competition, the two of you would have jumped at the chance to get the other one in trouble. I don't know what happened, but it looks like the two of you have found a common ground. Dare I say, the two of you might even be becoming friends?"

Ronda and May flashed looks at each other. "Don't count on it," Ronda said, looking back at Hunter. "But, that doesn't mean I don't respect her. And it certainly doesn't mean I expect her to take all the responsibility for something _I_ have as much a part in as she does."

"I think I have a little more," May protested, but shrugged to show she wouldn't push it.

"Well," Hunter said. "If you don't want to call it a friendship, that's your business, but I am pleased to see the two of you are acting like your members of the same team. Ronda, you might be Raw and May, you might be Smackdown, but we're all supposed to be a family here, and having the both of you cooperating, makes it easier for everyone."

"Oh, we're on our way to becoming _great_ pals," May said, doing what she could to keep any sarcasm from creeping into her voice, "Does this mean, we're cool now?" She ignored the shocked look Ronda shot to her.

"No." Hunter said firmly. "Since you're _both_ taking blame, there has to be a punishment for both of you."

"Fine," Ronda said. "What is it?"

"We haven't decided," Hunter admitted. "Vince wanted to suspend both of you for ninety days, but I believe Stephanie has managed to make him see that would be cutting off his nose to spite his face. I agreed to talk to both of you and then talk to them and we'll discuss your punishment." He alternated between looking at the both of them. "I'm thinking a fine and maybe a _lot_ of good will work in addition to what you usually do."

May didn't mind doing good will work, she was extremely active in the Make-A-Wish program, and had done a lot of other things for the WWE, and actually enjoyed when she could give back to the community. But, her free time was rare enough now, she knew that for as long as this punishment lasted, it would be non-existent. She wanted to ask him if she could at least count on the two weeks she and Dolph had been promised for their honeymoon, but decided that would have to wait. She hadn't realized when she suggested it, but her spur of the moment idea might have gotten her and Ronda in bigger trouble that they could have handled. _Mental note, think more carefully before suggesting violating the rules in the future. _ "That's fair," she settled on saying.

Ronda looked less pleased, most likely due to being in high enough demand with the WWE Universe, but she nodded in agreement. "When will we know?"

"Tomorrow," Hunter said. "Before Raw." He looked at May, "You will be reporting for Raw tomorrow. This rivalry between the two of you isn't over."

Ronda's smile was sly. "So, even though we broke the rules, we obviously impressed the audience," she said, "Because why else would we keep going on the rivalry?"

"Don't push it," Hunter advised. "You're lucky enough to be getting off this easily." He gave a curt nod, letting them both know they were dismissed.

.

{o}-{o}-{o}

.

"So, how big a fine do you think we're going to get?" May asked as the door to Hunter's office closed behind them.

"It won't be small," Ronda said, thinking she should warn her. "When they fine you, they want to make sure it hurts."

"Okay," May said and shrugged. "I've been saving what I can, so I think I'll manage. How about you?"

"Money isn't that much of an issue with me," Ronda admitted. "I still get some pretty good checks from those _bombs_ I made." She smiled, taking the rancor from her words.

May laughed, then said in a serious tone, "I actually liked those last two movies you made. The one that the critics loved, and the one that really took off when it went to DVD."

Ronda was shocked. "You watched my movies?"

May shrugged. "Well, sometimes I like to throw things at my TV and your movies give me a good excuse."

_Of course,_ Ronda thought, without bitterness.

May laughed. "Yeah, I've watched your movies, I've even _liked_ most of them. Maybe they weren't my favorite movies of all time, but they're good. You wouldn't have to hold a gun to my head to get me to watch one again."

Ronda shook her head. "Are you all right?" she asked, changing the subject. "I know this getting in trouble is new to you."

"At least to this extent," May said, as the two of them headed to the locker room together. "And I'm fine. I knew I was breaking rules when I suggested it, so I'd better be able to own up and take my punishment."

Ronda nodded, finding herself admiring May a little more. Sure, she was still a runt, and she still had slept with Seth, but she wasn't the pathetic asskisser Ronda always thought she was. And thinking about it, Ronda realized that a lot of what Ronda took to be asskissing, was just May being a nice person. _Nice, but when she gets going, she's got a mouth on her. _

"So, what are your plans now?" May asked.

Ronda was a little surprised May would even ask, but she shrugged, figuring May was just making conversation. "Seth, Roman and Dean are probably at a bar. I'll probably join them and we'll have some drinks. You?"

"Dolph is having some boy's time with Miz and some of the other guys," May said. "So, Renee and I are meeting at a place we found online for WCW."

"WCW?" Ronda was confused.

"Wine, cheese, and whine," May explained. "We meet, order a few bottles of wine, and one of those horrible cheese filled appetizers, because I love cheese. Usually nachos, the more loaded the better. And, we talk about whatever is bothering us, get it all out in the open."

"Whine," Ronda said, getting it. "Not W-I-N-E, but W-H-I-N-E."

"You got it!" May said, nodding. "It's like talk therapy, but tastier."

Ronda found herself smiling at that. For a moment, she could picture it, May and Renee and maybe a few other girls from the locker room, sitting at a table with a huge platter of nachos in front of them, glasses of wine, and everyone laughing. She did enjoy her times with Seth, Roman and Dean, but there were times when she missed her friend Maggie, and the way they could talk about things that "the boys" would find uncomfortable or foolish. She envied May her easy friendship with Renee. Due to her being Dean's wife, Ronda had spent some time with her, but it was always with the boys around, and their conversations always reflected that.

She realized May was studying her, and she frowned. "Something wrong?"

May hesitated. They were outside the door of the locker room now, but May made no move to push the door open. "Look, if this thing with Seth and the gang is optional, why don't you tell them you'll see them later and come with Renee and I? I mean, I know Renee and I are going, but Sarita, Alicia and Naomi might be joining us. And, I think Charlotte was invited too, possibly some of the other girls. So, it will be anywhere from two to seven or so of us."

Ronda's eyes widened. She had gone out with other girls from the locker room before, but never with May and Renee along before. And never for some type of ritual like this WCW sounded. Ronda had never been big on having a gang of girl pals before and she wasn't sure this was something she'd enjoy. "I-I appreciate the offer," she began.

"Then come along," May said, before she could decline. "It's not a big deal, just bad food, hopefully decent wine and a chance to piss and moan and get it all off your chest."

"No," Ronda said, although part of her wanted to say yes, for some reason she couldn't quite understand. "I don't think I should-"

"Why?" May asked, head tipped to one side. "It's not a big deal, we won't make you sign a pack in menstrual blood or something. It's just a girls night out, blow off steam, have some fun, you know, feel free to complain about stuff that guys will never understand, like boob sweat."

Now Ronda stared right at May's rather ample chest, with a faint scowl. "I don't have that problem," she remarked.

May looked at Ronda's chest, and shrugged, looking only slightly embarrassed. "Point taken," she said. "Okay, so Samoa Joe is more likely to have that problem than you, but there have to be things you'd like to discuss without having to worry. Like Seth's stinky feet."

"His feet aren't that stinky," Ronda said, feeling she had to defend him, he was her husband after all.

"Aww," May said, with a small laugh, "You are_ so_ much better for him than I was. You can't lie to me, Ronda, I dated the guy and the stench of his feet drove me up the wall."

"I bought him some of those socks with the built in odor guard," Ronda said, before she could stop herself. "They help."

Now May laughed louder and longer, "You'll have to tell me where to get them, Dolph's feet aren't exactly a bouquet of wildflowers." She became serious. "Look, I'm not asking you out of pity or because I've got some strange idea that now we've gotten into trouble, we're bonded. I'm asking because… well, I think I've misjudged you. I've gotten to respect you through this rivalry, and I'd like the chance to get to know you better. Maybe we'll never be pals like Renee and I are, but, maybe we can find a middle ground."

Ronda thought for a moment, and realized that she really _did_ want to go along with May. It wasn't that she wouldn't have a good time with "the Boys" but there was a large part of her that realized being in the company of other women, free to discuss whatever bugged them about the business, the partners they had, whatever, could be a good chance to recharge. _God knows I can use a recharge, _ she thought, remembering that her limited spare time was about to shrivel to nothing for awhile, when she and May were told their punishment tomorrow. "Are you sure…" she asked, hesitantly.

May grinned, looking genuinely pleased to see Ronda was considering. "I'm sure," She said, nodding. "Text Seth and tell him you'll catch up with him at the hotel, that you're coming to WCW with me and Renee. He'll probably freak the fuck out."

That did make Ronda laugh, because she knew it was true. Seth would freak out that May and Ronda were out having a night on the town, eating bad food, drinking wine. Well, Ronda wasn't sure about the wine, but she didn't think it was mandatory that she drank wine. Hadn't May been drinking shots of Everclear the night she first hooked with Seth? Slowly she nodded. "Okay, you're on."

May grinned as she opened the door to let Ronda go into the locker room first.

* * *

**Author's Notes**: _So, we're here at the end. And I think it sorta ties up the whole controversy between May and Ronda. Do I think they'll suddenly be best friends? No, I don't. But, I could see Ronda sometimes going along with May, Renee and the other girls for WCW. Especially if Seth has done something to really piss her off. _

_I do have another idea for a story, but as far as I'm concerned, the series is closed. _

_Thank you to everyone who's been taking this journey with me. I appreciate the company! _


End file.
